Man thrives, oddly enough, only in the presence of a challenging environment

The Japanese have always loved fresh fish. But the waters close to Japan have not held many fish for decades. So to feed the Japanese population, fishing boats got bigger and went farther than ever. The farther the fishermen went, the longer it took to bring in the fish.

If the return trip took more than a few days, the fish were not fresh. The Japanese did not like the taste.

To solve this problem, fishing companies installed freezers on their boats. They would catch the fish and freeze them at sea. Freezers allowed the boats to go farther and stay longer.

However, the Japanese could taste the difference between fresh and frozen and they did not like frozen fish. The frozen fish brought a lower price. So fishing companies installed fish tanks. They would catch the fish and stuff them in the tanks, fin to fin. After a little thrashing around, the fish stopped moving. They were tired and dull, but alive.

Unfortunately, the Japanese could still taste the difference. Because the fish did not move for days, they lost their fresh-fish taste.

The Japanese preferred the lively taste of fresh fish, not sluggish fish.

So how did Japanese fishing companies solve this problem? How do they get fresh-tasting fish to Japan?

To keep the fish tasting fresh, the Japanese fishing companies (still) put the fish in the tanks. But now they add a small shark to each tank. The fish, in an attempt to run away from the shark, stay constantly alert and hence, fresh. The shark may eat a few fish, but most of the fish arrive in a very lively state.
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Lessons from the story: Like the Japanese fish - "Man thrives, oddly enough, only in the presence of a challenging environment."- L. Ron Hubbard.

Challenges are what keep us FRESH! Instead of avoiding challenges, jump into them. Beat the heck out of them.

Enjoy the game. If your challenges are too large or too numerous, reorganize the challenge, team up, be resourceful and do not give up. Failing makes you tired.

If you have met your goals, set some bigger goals.

Once you meet your personal or family needs, move onto goals for your group, the society, even mankind.

Don't create success and lie in it.

You have resources, skills and abilities to make a difference.

Put a shark in your tank and see how far you can really go!