Self Motivation
Potatoes, eggs, and coffee beans
Once upon a time 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 fighting and struggling all the time
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, moaned 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 a bowl
He then ladled the coffee out and placed it in a cup
Turning to her he asked
"Daughter, 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
"Father, what does this mean?" she asked
He then explained that the potatoes, the eggs and 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 the thin outer shell protecting its liquid interior until it was put in the boiling water
Then the inside of the egg became hard
However, the ground coffee beans were unique
After they were exposed to the boiling water, they changed the water and created something new
"Which are you," he asked his daughter
"When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a potato, an egg, or a coffee bean? "
Moral: In life, things happen around us, things happen to us, but the only thing that truly matters is what happens within us
Which one are you?
