How fishing is like entrepreneurship

How, you ask? Have faith in your dream!

I watched the movie “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen” and to me, the theme of it was to have faith in your dream. In summary, Fred Jones played by Ewan McGregor, is a fisheries expert and academic who works for the British government. When he’s approached by Harriet Chetwode-Talbot played by Emily Blunt with a plan to introduce salmon into the waterways of Yemen for the purpose of sport fishing, he laughs off the scheme, claiming it impossible.

The movie is based on Paul Torday’s novel, a political satire that was a best-seller in the UK. It’s an English movie too and I love them because they aren’t full of “blockbuster” film qualities as American movies are.

How is it like entrepreneurship?

When you fish you have to wait a long time to catch anything, don’t you? It could take 100s of hours before you feel that magical tug on your line. But you do it anyway. You may go fishing to enjoy nature and its beautiful scenery and the sounds of water flowing and for the stillness fishing creates in you. There are no phones ringing, no email and no noises of a busy city – silence.

This is a lot like starting your own business. You believe in your idea but like fishing it may take a long time to reach success as you’ve defined it. You persevere anyway. And you have patience.

Entrepreneurship means that you see problems as mysteries to be solved no matter how long it takes.

I was re-reading one of Tad Hargrave’s posts recently. This one was about Slow Marketing.

 In it he describes how marketing or building your business is like having a cup of tea. One sips tea. One doesn’t gulp it like one does coffee.

So have faith. Believe in your dreamPersevere. Be patient and wait. Success will come.

Tell us about one time when you believed in your dream – when others around you were saying “Give it up”.

Originally posted March 27, 2012 

Continue Reading