There's this story of Calvin and Hobbes.
And how Calvin is drawing up his list for Santa Claus.
At which point, Calvin turns to Hobbes and says: What would you like for Christmas?
And Hobbes says: I'd like a tuna sandwich.
Of course, Calvin freaks out.
Because he's got a list a mile long. A list that seems to have rocket launchers, trains, boats, and a whole bunch of stuff he wants for Christmas. And all Hobbes wants is a tuna sandwich.
As is inevitable, Christmas morn arrives
And Calvin is now throwing a massive tantrum, because Santa hasn't brought him all he wanted. And Hobbes sits with a big smile on his face and says: “I got my tuna sandwich.”
Taking three months off every year depends solely on your definition of your tuna sandwich.
Do you really know what's enough?
Have you ever sat down and worked out if you could freeze your income at a point what would be enough for you from now till the day you die? You haven't have you?
Well don't feel bad about it, because, as humans we're pretty useless at planning what really matters. And of course, we're greedy. But determining our tuna sandwich, enables us to have enough. To be happy. And contented.
And that's what really matters, isn't it?
To find out how we actually grew our business at Psychotactics, by cutting back, listen to the audio below. And of course, listen/read to the Three Prong System, that shows you the basis of how to structure your business for the ‘Three-Month Vacation.'
Sean, I stumbled on your site and found a gem of a business resource. What made me stick around was this quality podcast featuring one of my favourite childhood cartoons. It’s been a while since I read Calvin and Hobbes but I instantly remembered the “tuna sandwhich” one you refer too… and yes it does make so much sense in the business world. I’ll have to re-read them all, I think, to see if I can get some more pearls of wisdom.
Your advice is always spot on. This is a great tip for me because I often let my businesses get out of alignment with my values.
Very powerful presentation. I also like to schedule my vacation ahead of time. Thank you for your advice.
The sad thing is that the conventional work place isn’t geared to appreciate these ideas :s It motivated me to get out of the rat race, and I was thankfully allowed some transition-space by a pretty cool employer (Cognos 🙂 Before they were bought by IBM :(). I guess the trick is making more money with smaller hours worked, or just having the ability to work less hours period. E.g. my living expenses are incredibly low right now and that lets me work in the rat race one day a week and work for myself 6 days/week!
Also, I’m hungry now :s
Heh, heh. I like the hungry part 🙂
Great post about not being so focused on the little things in life. I hope that one day I’ll find my “tuna sandwich” and be able to be happy with where I am in my life, but until then articles like these help give me hope for the human race! Thanks for being a decent human being!