[notfarnow]

Consider the guy who plows my driveway. I had to wait 2 years to be on his LIST, because everyone knows he's the best. And by that, I mean when he plows your driveway you stand out there and say, "wow, that really IS a nice job". He only does 25 driveways, because he has other jobs and he doesn't like to rush. He also owns a woodlot, and sells firewood cut & seasoned. I only had to wait a year to get on that list, I was lucky. When he sells you a cord of firewood, it's a full cord with no funny business.

He is a funny feller... talks funny, and looks a little funny too. But he is a joy to deal with. Just wants to make an honest living, but doesn't want to work TOO hard. When he plows the driveway, his wife often comes along with him in the truck. She doesn't sit over in the passenger seat, she sits in the middle, right beside him. They have coffee, and they smile and wave if they see you in the window.

It's been a busy year for plowing, we've been plowed 10 times at $30 a pop. Considering he does 25 driveways and we're only halfway through the season, that's pretty good coin. I was chatting with him about that when I paid him right before christmas. He said it was a great year for him to be busy, because both his kids are in university. When he said that, you could hear the pride in his voice.

Now, contrast that with my friend's father who is SUPER SUCCESFUL... I know because he always tells us, in case we didn't notice. Made BIG MONEY in commercial real estate... he always has a BIG DEAL on the go. He's a nice enough guy, unless you are stuck with him for over 30 minutes, then you start to get annoyed by his constant need to recite the price of everything he owns. I actually admire his success, because he has worked really hard... harder than anyone else I know. However, he never seems happy, and demonstrates a constant need to prove himself. On the upside, it drives his success. The downside is he doesn't seem very content, and he can be a bit much.

Stand those two men beside each other, and ask me who I think is succesful.