Basically, a businessman runs into a fisherman by the beach and is telling him how he should get a boat, a fleet, put in hard work to make a lot of money and then he can retire, take it easy, go fishing for a couple hours each day, etc. Then the fisherman says "Isn't that what I'm doing now?"
Being successful is vague. If your goal is to be happy rather than rich, your requirements are much simpler.
If the fisherman is already fishing and selling his fish to earn a living..isn't he already in business for himself? If he can save enough for retirement, than I see his point. If not, it's going to be pretty rough for him when he gets to an age when he wants to quit. If he had enough money, he could also move onto something else if he ever got bored of fishing.
Fishing for fun is also different than fishing for a living.
Money doesn't make you happy. It opens many more doors that can lead to happiness.
The moral of the story is to pursue happiness over extreme financial success at the expense of happiness.
The story also acts against the deferred life plan. Many people endure things they hate in order to make a lot of money. In most cases, this is probably a bad thing... especially when there are better alternatives.
http://pitchfevermusicacademy.blogspot.com/2008/06/great-sto...
Was the Mexican fisherman toiling away on a fishing boat so he could become rich so he could have the freedom to spend his days fishing?