The Fishing is Always Good, and Sometimes You Catch One
Today I actually caught one
The boys and I grabbed the rods, picked up some coffees, and threw some lines in the water. It was the first time that I have been fishing in awhile. I grew up fishing the lakes of Washington, continually hunting for that elusive rainbow trout. Up north, we mostly use lures and are continually casting and reeling it in. Down here, it’s all bait fishing. You throw that squid in the water, and you just wait. It gives you a lot of time to sit out there and reflect.
I learned how to fish from my grandpa. We would take out this beaten up, ugly, red canoe and cast out hoping for the best. He taught me all of the basics, how to tie a knot, how to properly bait a hook, and how to cast effectively. For a simple concept, there are a lot of intricacies to the art form. The fish are smarter than people give them credit for.
The biggest lesson that he imparted on me was, “the fishing is always good, and sometimes you catch one.” As a ten-year-old, it was hard for me to grasp that concept. I went fishing to catch fish. Isn’t that what you are supposed to do? I guess that’s why they call it “fishing” and not “catching.”
My grandpa and I stopped fishing together years ago. It was getting harder and harder for him to go out and so we stopped going altogether. It was a bummer. I enjoyed fishing with him. Now, every time I go out, I remember all of the tips and tricks that he taught me. His line always stays with me. In my first cast of the day, I still think, “the fishing is always good, and sometimes you catch one.” If you go into a session with that mindset, you are never disappointed in the outcome. Sometimes the ocean gives you a fish, but most often, you are heading home empty-handed.
As I continue to age, I realize that advice is more of a metaphor for life. If you go into life thinking that you are going to catch that fish, you are always going to be disappointed. You can’t assume that everything is going to fall your way. You can’t assume that you are going to land that 400-pound dream tuna.
When you take the time to smell the roses and enjoy life for what it is, you always will find happiness and peace. I see this the most in my work life. Being in sales, I know that you are not always going to close every deal. Some fall the way you want it to; others will nibble at your line, play with you a bit, and inevitably getaway.
When I first started my career, I thought that I needed to close every prospect. This is an ignorant mindset. In reality, you close, 1–10% of your leads depending on your industry and your product. I quickly learned that in fact, some prospects are better than others, and you will close what you are meant to close. Other deals will just fall away.
The further I advanced in my career, I started to take time to smell the roses. I appreciated the relationships that I made along the way. I get the benefit of meeting all different types of people from all different walks of life. Even though at the end of the day they might not buy my product but at the very least I made a new meaningful connection.
This new mindset led to a renewed sense of being and helped with the inevitable burnout that every salesperson encounters along the way. I was able to appreciate and enjoy the process more. Ironically enough, it helped with my overall sales performance. As I made meaningful connections, the deals started flowing in. I became comfortable with the process and comfortable with the outcomes. The more comfortable I was, the more comfortable my prospects were, and at the end of the day, they were the ones that were much more likely to buy.
When you take a more relaxed, confident approach to sales, it starts to open up clues that I wouldn’t see when I was rigid and in my own head. That idea is the same when I am out fishing. I could sit there and focus intensely on each cast, but then I might miss the dolphins breaching in the distance or the seals messing with the seagulls. I started to notice character traits and cues that my prospect would give me on the calls that I knew I could use to my advantage. A lot of these clues come up when I am having conversations that have nothing to do with the product or sale itself. Prospects would tell me how busy they are or how annoying their customers are being. “Well, now that you mentioned it, our product actually helps alleviate some of that stress that you are currently having.” And boom, we are into the sale.
The advice, “the fishing is always good, and sometimes you catch one” applies to other aspects of my life as well. It is probably the clearest when it comes to relationships. You might have a fish on the line and you real it in to find out that it’s actually a stingray and you want nothing to do with it. You might also be out there fishing for days, weeks, and months at a time, and you may not ever catch one. The choice is clear. You can sit there and feel sorry for yourself that relationships are not going your way, or you can take the missed opportunities and bad dates at face value and enjoy the process. Maybe you have a horrible date. Maybe your date tells you they hate puppies, and they want to die alone. Great. Now you know exactly what not to look for when you go on your next date. If you focus on creating a connection and having a good time, the rest will fall into place.
As with anything in life, you can try to force the issue, or you can take life’s peaks and valleys at face value, enjoy the ride, and live a happier life. It’s funny how a quote about fishing can pertain to so much more than just fishing. I try my best to say, “the fishing is always good, and sometimes you catch one” whenever the going gets tough. I understand the value of having an appreciation for the trials and tribulations of life. I know that some days I will catch my trophy fish, and some days I will come home empty-handed. On those days that I walk away from the water without a fish, I know that I enjoyed the beauty of nature, I saw a couple of dolphins, and I watched a majestic sunset. Life is all about perspective.
