Time Will Tell The Whole Story

A farmer and his son had a horse who helped the family earn a living. One day, the horse ran away, and their neighbors exclaimed, “Your horse ran away; what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.”

A few days later, the horse returned home, leading a few wild horses back to the farm. The neighbors shouted, “Your horse has returned, what great luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.”

Later that week, the farmer’s son was trying to break one of the wild horses and she threw him to the ground, breaking his leg. The villagers cried, “Your son broke his leg, what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.” A few weeks later, soldiers from the national army marched through town, recruiting young men to go off to war. They did not take the farmer’s son, who was still recovering from his injury. Friends shouted, “Your boy is spared, what tremendous luck!” To which the farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.”

The moral of this story is that no event can truly be judged as good or bad, lucky or unlucky, fortunate or unfortunate, but that only time will tell the whole story.  You don’t know if the outcomes you get today are positive or negative. However, the key is your optimistic outlook, regardless of what happens.

This doesn’t mean you can’t be disappointed if you lose a deal, miss out on a job, or someone else gets the promotion. However, it does mean that you won’t get too high or too low either way. You will focus on what you can control today: your effort and attitude.

P.S. The Optimistic Outlook is Now a Podcast! It would mean a lot if you left a rating or review wherever you listen to podcast.