The first lesson in life—never try to please everyone

Author: Gui Gan (pseudonym)

A young man asked a wise man for the secret of success. , the wise man replied: "I don't know what the secret of success is, but I know the secret of failure is to please everyone.".

There is a fable like this: A father and his son were driving donkeys to the market to sell. On the way, someone said, "Look at those two fools - they could have been riding donkeys comfortably, but they had to walk." The old man thought this was a good idea, so he and his son rode on donkeys. Soon, he met some people, and one of them said: "Look at those two lazy bones, the poor donkey is almost crushed. No one will buy it." The old man discussed with his son and decided to move forward in another way: The four legs of the donkey are tied, and the donkey is hung upside down on a pole and carried along! At dusk, the two of them came to the bridge near the market, panting from exhaustion. While crossing the bridge, the angry donkey broke free, fell into the river and drowned. This fable has been passed down for thousands of years, reminding us that everyone must learn to be independent and control their own destiny. You can't please everyone, that's the unchanging truth.

Ask yourself, what excites you? When was the last time something exciting happened to you? The answers to these questions can be helpful clues to your understanding of yourself. Only by facing reality and stepping out bravely will you get what you want. Once you know yourself and master yourself, you will see opportunities and potential that you never knew you had before, and you will have the courage to use your creativity that you have never used before.

As Goethe said: Whatever you can do or want to do, do it now.