This morning I found a cup resembling a magic lamp way in the back corner of the cupboard.  It’s been there for ages and only revealed itself recently since its companion cups had found their way to the yard sale/thrift store.  It’s incredible what we uncover/unearth when we clean out a cupboard, a closet or our minds.   I was reminded that our life is full of opportunities to ponder “what would you do if you had three wishes”.  It’s an age-old question dating back to Aladdin and his lamp.  Legend has it that the “master” of the lamp can have any three requests fulfilled.

Coming up with a quick answer is usually easy for people.  Money.  Coming up with a serious answer is a bit more difficult.  The reason 90/% of people polled say money is what that money will buy them.

Maybe a better question would be if you had all the money you could imagine, what would you do with your life?  Use it to create world change, ensure your mortality, travel around the world, spend more time with your family, write a best-selling novel?

This list could be long and expansive.  Of course, all of the wishes are irrelevant by simply requesting everlasting happiness.  Happiness is after all the goal of money, fame, power, beauty and any other desire.  After all, even if you were dirt poor, unknown, weak and ugly, what would it matter if you were absolutely thrilled with life?

The old saying “Money does not buy happiness” rings true since happiness is an inside job.  Despite money being the top answer to this question, the two that round out the top three are health and family/relationships.  Incredibly the more money people amass, the less time they seem to be able to spend on family and relationships.  I am reminded of a poignant story about a Mexican fisherman:

An American businessman was standing at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked.  Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna.  The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish.

“How long did it take you catch them?” the American asked.

“Only a little while”. The Mexican replied.

“Why don’t you stay out longer and catch more fish?” the American then asked.

“I have enough to support my family’s immediate needs”. The Mexican said.

“But” the American then asked, “What do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said:  “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos.  I have a full and busy life, senor.”

The American scoffed:  “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you.  You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds you could buy a bigger boat and, with the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats.  Eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats.  Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the consumers, eventually opening your own can factory.  You would control the product, processing and distribution.  You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually NYC where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked: “But senor, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied:  “15-20 years.”

“But what then, senor?”

The American laughed and said:  “That’s the best part.  When the time is right, you could announce an IPO – an Initial Public Offering – and sell your company stock to the public and become very right.  You would make millions.”

“Millions, senior?  Then what?”

The American said slowly:  “Then you would retire.  Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos . . .”

So here’s the question, is your wish just waiting for you to accept it?