“It doesn’t matter what happens to you in life; it’s what you do about it that counts.” ~ Tony Robbins
A daughter complained to her father that her life was miserable and that she didn’t know how she was going to make it. She was tired of constantly fighting and struggling. It seemed just as one problem was solved, another one soon followed.
Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Once the three pots began to boil, he placed potatoes in one pot, eggs in the second pot, and ground coffee beans in the third pot.
He then let them sit and boil, without saying a word to his daughter. The daughter groaned and impatiently waited, wondering what he was doing.
After twenty minutes, he turned off the burners. He took the potatoes out of the pot and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in another bowl.
He then ladled the coffee into a cup.
Turning to his daughter, he asked, “What do you see?”
“Potatoes, eggs, and coffee,” she hastily replied.
“Look closer,” he said, “and touch the potatoes.” She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.
Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. Its rich aroma brought a smile to her face.
“And, what does this mean?” she asked.
He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs, and the coffee beans had each faced the same adversity– the boiling water.
However, each one reacted differently. The potato went in strong, hard, and unrelenting, but in boiling water, it became soft and weak.
The egg was fragile, with its thin outer shell protecting the liquid interior until it was placed in boiling water. Then the inside of the egg became hard.
However, the ground coffee beans were unique. After being exposed to boiling water, they changed the water and created something new.
The Chef asked his daughter, “When adversity knocks on your door, how would you respond?”
In life, things happen around us, things happen to us, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us.
Make kindness a habit.
To Your Success,
Peak Performance Coach