A while back, when Lady Laura and I had this luxury called an evening, we'd religiously watch a now-defunct survival reality show called The Island.
Bear Grylls (remember that guy?) would plop a bunch of strangers on a tropical island, and they had to, well…
SURVIVE.
There was one episode — or more specifically, a moment — that stuck with me long after watching it, and I dare say, there is much to be drawn from it:
There was this bloke who'd been fishing for hours with his makeshift rod.
I mean, his skin was red raw from the constant sun exposure.
Anyway, he finally caught a fish and reeled that puppy to the rocks from which he perched.
I couldn't name you the species, but it was a modest catch.
Enough to feed a couple of adults, at least.
But an entire camp comprised of a dozen hangry people?
No, he needed something bigger.
MUCH BIGGER.
So, he made the gut-wrenching choice to turn his catch into bait and toss it back into the crystal-clear seawater.
There was every chance the fish could've wriggled free…
Or a bigger fish could have dodged the hook and gobbled the cheap offering, forcing our novice fisherman to apologise for his cock-up to everyone.
I won't bore you with the suspense.
It worked.
But the lesson here isn't "Whoopee-do, what a hero. Give that man a fish tail."
No.
It's that he took a risk and delayed gratification.
He sacrificed a small win now for something bigger later.
This attitude can be applied to any facet of our lives, as there are examples to be found everywhere.
Take my publishing gig as one:
Right now, I could be enrolled in Kindle Unlimited — which, for Legionnaires not fully clued up on it, is an exclusivity clause set by Amazon whereby you cannot sling your ebook on any other retailer.
Not even your own storefront.
You are paid a fraction of a penny per paid read, and should your book perform reasonably well, they might throw you an All-Star bonus.
That's the gist of it.
While I'm not against the programme as it has made many a scribe filthy rich, I've never enjoyed the idea of putting all my eggs in one basket.
But, then, I am also deeply distrustful of the notion of security, given we're just a ball of rock and water floating in a void of debris that could wipe us out at any moment.
Not to mention solar flares.
(That's an email for another day.)
Anyway, the point I'm making is this:
I, too, would rather "forgo" the thrill of a quick win that, say, Kindle Unlimited might afford, to instead build a career with stronger foundations.
One where the risk is distributed across multiple channels rather than handed over to one.
Anyway, enough preaching for one day.
School's out, kids.
Which can only mean one thing…
Indulging in LOTS of leisurely activities like — and you guessed it — reading.
But did you know you can also listen to my wares?
Admittedly, I've still got some books to format into audiobooks, but there are dozens of hours of fictional fun you can listen to on any device.
Like The Divided Region and Tiny Epics: Vol. 1
Have a great weekend, Legionnaire.
Stay classy (and cool) out there.
DJJW