Tade adjusted his position for a better view of the sky, the sea… everything. He’d been looking forward to the Dubai trip for months- since his company got the invite to discuss possible investment deal with Al Michel Ltd. He jumped at the opportunity to represent his company. Imagine all the places he would visit and all the pictures he would take… his colleagues would be green with envy! He specifically booked a non-stop flight to have more time for sightseeing. Meanwhile, he would enjoy his 7 hours 5 minutes journey. On arrival, Tade checked into his hotel room and turned in for the night. He was up bright and early the next morning. It was such a blessing that his business meeting was scheduled for 4:30pm. Al Michel Ltd. observed business hours of 9.00am to 5.30pm. After the deal had been sealed, and he was confident it would be, he would proceed to a diner with the CEO.
Tade got into a cab and told the driver, “Take me everywhere”. “Ah, a tourist!” Said the driver with a knowing smile. And the adventure began! In no particular order, he visited the Burj Khalifa- the tallest man-made structure in the world! Wow, it looked better than all its pictures. Burj Al Arab was a sight to behold; imagine lodging at the world’s only 7-star hotel! Oh, how could he describe the Dubai Miracle Garden? The world’s largest flower garden practically took his breath away. And ah, Palm Jumeirah, the awesome chain of artificial islands. Wouldn’t it be great to take the monorail and see the island up-close? “How can I get on the monorail?” He asked the driver. The driver looked at him curiously through the rear-view mirror and said, “we should be going back now”. “But I haven’t been everywhere” blurted out Tade. “You can’t get everywhere,” said the driver, “besides, didn’t I hear you mention a meeting on the phone this morning?” The meeting! Tade quickly checked the time and he froze. He blinked several times to make sure he wasn’t mistaken. He wasn’t! The time was 4.20pm and he was on the other end of the city! Here are a few lessons to learn:
- Majoring on the minor: never be carried away by sightseeing at the expense of your main mission. Let the “fun” be the reward for mission accomplished.
- You can’t get everywhere: never try to go everywhere or do everything. Be focused.
- Drifting is risky: without a specific destination in mind, drifting becomes probable. The further you drift, the farther away you may be to your actual destination.
- Beware of time illusion: at the beginning of anything, there seems to be a lot of time ahead and you tend to take your time. Before you know it, the calendar becomes outdated one-leaf-at-a-time. Start early to avoid desperation later.