The Edge

How do you get the edge in the daily discuss of your existence? What is it that you do that sets you apart from the challenges you tackle? The mind could be a tricky weapon that turns very quickly on the user if not fully understood.

Think about the story of the salt merchant who used donkey transportation to get his salt bags to the market. This merchant lived in a remote village and used the only one route available to get his salt to the market. The beautiful thing about his experience is that on the route to the market lies a beautiful river where he and his donkey always stopped for a drink of water before continuing on their journey. One day, when they got to the river, the donkey felt over heated by the sun and went deeper into the river for a drink. When the donkey came out of the river, he discovered that his load has become lighter, but did not know why nor did he care. The simple fact was that when he went deeper into the river and came out, his load was lighter.

As you can see, the donkey has learned a beneficial behavior to the extent that everyday they come out to the river on the way to the market, the donkey will go deeper into the river for a drink leaving the merchant with little or no salt for the market. The merchant was beside himself having been subjected to the continued loss of market ware and income to feed his family. He did not know what to do to the donkey to change the donkey's behavior and there was no other route to the market. He thought about changing to a different product but found that option impractical for his state of being at the time.

The question is - how does the merchant get an edge over his challenge? It is a case of understanding the mind as a weapon it is. After several days of agony, the merchant decided to fully engage his mind. It then occurred to him that the donkey is practicing a learned behavior and the only way to change that is to learn a new behavior that would be beneficial to the merchant. The next day, the merchant decided to load the salt bag with sand. He put the bag on the donkey's back, and they set out en-route to the market as usual. When they got to the river, the merchant waited as the donkey went deep into the water for a drink. When the donkey came out, his load felt much heavier as he walked slowly to the market. The next day, the merchant loaded a salt bag on the donkey and they set out again to the market. When they got to the river, the donkey did not try to go deeper into the water; rather he drank close to the banks and proceeded diligently to the market. I am sure you have been in the merchant's position in several encounters in your life. The question still remains, how do you get the edge? A mind is a terrible thing to waste!