A Greek Olive Grower
In a small traditional tavern just outside Plakias in the Greek Island of Crete, an American tourist complimented a Greek villager on the quality of his olives and asked where he found them.
"I have my own olive trees and I pick a few for me, my family and my tavern", answered the Greek.
"But since they are excellent, why don't you pick more?", asked the American.
The Greek explained that his small crop was sufficient to meet his needs, those of his family and his tavern.
The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"
"I sleep late, fish a little, go to my olive tree field to collect a few olives, go to my tavern for a few hours, play with my children, and take siestas with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends; and sing a few songs. I have a full life."
The American interrupted, "I have a degree from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by picking more olives every day. You can then sell the extra you don't need. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger field. With the extra money the larger field of olive trees will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire area of olive trees where you will have other people working for you!"
"Instead of selling your olives to a middle man, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants which bottle them for consumption and maybe even open your own. You can then leave this little village and move to Athens, Rome or even America! From there you can direct your huge olive enterprise."
"How long will this take?", asked the Greek.
"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years", replied the American.
"And after that?"
"Afterwards? Well that's when it gets really good", answered the American laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!"
"Millions? Really? And after that?"
"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children and grandchildren, catch a few fish, take a siesta, and spend your evenings with your friends."
