After the final episode of âSeinfeldâ in 1998, Jerry Seinfeld didnât know what to do next with his life.
With the success of the show, he had options.
âWhat do I do?â he asked a friend.
âWell whatâs been the best experience youâve had so far?â the friend asked.
Seinfeld said,
Two things:
First, writingââI just see something and I write it downâI like a big, yellow legal padâand once I get that pad open, I canât stopâŚthe next thing I know, the day is gone.â
Second, performing stand-upââI just love the life of it,â Jerry said. âI love the joy of hearing laughs and making jokes.â
So, despite the cool and lucrative opportunities to further an acting or screenwriting career in Hollywood, Seinfeld moved back to New York City where he returned to writing jokes by day and performing in comedy clubs by night.
Takeaway 1:
âFor anyone trying to discern what to do with their life,â the author Amy Krouse Rosenthal said, âPAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU PAY ATTENTION TO. That's pretty much all the info you need.â
Pay attention to what you can pay attention to so that, as Seinfeld put it, âthe next thing you know, the day is gone.â
Takeaway 2:
After investing 9 years into creating the 9 seasons of the show, Seinfeld returned to being a standup comedian.
He made an estimated $38 million from just the last season of the showâwhen he had a boatful of money and unlimited options, he went back to the thing he loved when he had little money and few options.
It made me think of the parable of the fisherman and the businessman:
In a small coastal village, there is a fisherman who owns a small row boat. One afternoon, after fishing all morning, he returns to shore with his boat full of fish.
A vacationing businessman sees the fisherman and is impressed, âHow long does it take you to catch so many fish?â
âOh, just a couple of hours,â the fisherman says.
The businessman immediately sees a business opportunity. He offers to invest money in the fishermanâenough to buy a bigger boat and to set up his own company supplying fish to every restaurant in the village.
Fisherman: âAnd then what?â
Businessman: âWeâll set up a production plant and distribute fish to restaurants around the world.â
Fisherman: âAnd then what?â
Businessman: âEventually the business will be so big that weâll sell it for a huge sum of money.â
Fisherman: âAnd then what?â
Businessman: âYouâll have so much money that youâll be able to do whatever you want. You can retire, move to a house by the sea, and fish as much as you want.â
The fisherman was confused, âIsnât that what I already do?â
Itâs just a reminder: the ability to do what you want for as long as you want is priceless and, often, inexpensive.
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âThe highest form of wealth is the ability to wake up every morning and say, âI can do whatever I want today.ââ â Morgan Housel
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