NFIB

Gone Fishin'
03/ 25/ 2002

by Harvey King

After an especially chilly winter, all l can think about is fishing. Maybe that's because I believe fishing is the perfect recreational sport for someone who runs a business.

Fishing and business are so similar. For instance, in both activities, one needs to know the market's need and respond to it with an enticing offer. I've discovered, however, the marketing metaphor starts breaking down when one starts talking about "serving" customers and "serving" fish.

For some folks, running a business is like fishing with a cane pole beneath the shade of an old willow tree: enough success to keep them fed and coming back; more joy and peace than most people will ever know.

For others, running a business means stepping into a boat and heading off shore. More investment in gear, more territory to work, but still drawn by passion and rewarded in direct proportion to the effort extended.

Still others view business in terms of offshore conquests and trophies captured in the seven seas.

And then there are a few who believe business means capturing and controlling the distribution channel that runs from the North Atlantic to the can of Charlie Tuna on the grocery store shelf.

Movies and literature have a long tradition of mining the metaphorical images of fishing in ways that can be unsettling for those of us who run small businesses. Last summer, the movie The Perfect Storm could have been instructive to struggling dotcoms who, despite being loaded to the brim with venture capital, were about to be heading into gale force winds and tempest waves. The movie explored what occurs to businesses propelled by hubris rather than common sense. It gave most business owners I know a real sinking feeling.

Other fishing classics like The Old Man and the Sea and—while not technically a fish—Moby Dick, also explore the price paid when we become obsessed with pursuit of the ultimate prize, rather than merely the pursuit of one's daily meal.

Thank goodness there are enough ponds and lakes and rivers and lagoons and deep seas to allow us all to experience the challenges and rewards of fishing in our own ways.

For me, the chilly weather and economy make the green grass and shade of a riverbank look awfully comfortable these days. However, I must admit: like many small business owners, there's always this one deep sea fish I still would really like to have mounted and hanging on my wall.

Harvey King is the pen name of a real small business owner. Write him in care of MyBusiness, or e-mail him at hking@mybusinessmag.com.

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This article originally appeared in the May/June 2001 issue of MyBusiness Magazine, NFIB's member magazine.

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