Week 371 (brendan@brendanbarca.com)

Here's your weekly dose of Fuel Your Mind Friday where I share business building ideas, lifestyle design hacks, and inspirational content to help you thrive in your work and find purpose in your life.

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PSA: My wife, Pema Sherpa, and I have another blog called The Mindful Minute! Check it out here.

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THE MAN AND THE SAILOR (ACCEPTING WHERE YOU ARE)

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There was once a man who lived in a magnificent home on the Connecticut coast. In the summertime, while running conference calls for his company, he'd look onto the harbor as boats jetted out to sea. There was one sailboat with a sky blue sail that he saw nearly daily.

Most days his view made him very happy. "This is why I bought this beautiful house," he'd say. "For views like this."

But every once in a while he'd find himself getting jealous of the sailor who took daily trips out to sea while he spent all day on the phone. "What I'd pay to go out to sea every day like the guy with the sky blue sail," he'd murmur to himself.

One fine summer evening, after work, he drove to a local pub to get a drink as the sun set. Sitting at the bar, enjoying the foamed head of a Guinness, he overheard a man talking at the table behind him.

"Yup that's mine! She's got a sail as blue as the sky itself!" It was the man with the sky blue sail. He turned away from his beer to get a better look.

The sailor went on talking to the guys at his table. "Every morning I take her out to sea. As we head out, we pass all these wonderful homes on the coastline. My favorite one is the house with the giant American flag out front. Do you know the one? It's gorgeous. Every day I pass it I think to myself, 'what I'd do to live in a place like that.' " ​
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The man at the bar sipped his drink and smiled to himself at the irony of it all...the sailor was talking about was his house.

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This is a story I heard years ago when I was a kid, but the older I've gotten, the more it's resonated.

We all make the mistake of fantasizing about how good someone else's life must be, but we fail to be grateful for what we have.

To avoid falling into this trap, we must practice acceptance.

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Accept who you are.

Accept what you have.

Accept where you are now.
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The next time you catch yourself wishing you had someone else's life, remember this story.

Look at all the things you have to be grateful for right now.

You are exactly where you are supposed to be.

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Until next week,

- Brendan

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​brendanbarca.com​

Don't miss our newest creation, The Mindful Minute -> ​Check it out here!