Once Upon a Business – Episode 101

The Milkmaid and Her Pail

Lisa Bloom: One day, Molly the milkmaid, had filled her pails with milk. Her job was to milk the cows and then bring the milk to the market to sell. Molly loved to think about what to spend her money on. As she filled the pails with milk and went to the market, she again thought of all the things she wanted to buy.

Hi, I’m Lisa Bloom, the story coach, and you’re listening to Once Upon a Business. In each episode, we explore a story, a fairy tale, folk tale or traditional story, so that we can discover the amazing lessons relevant for business and for entrepreneurs.

As she walked along the road, she thought of buying a cake and a basket full of fresh strawberries. A little further down the road, she spotted a chicken. She thought, with the money I get from today, I’m going to buy my own chicken. That chicken will lay eggs. Then I can sell milk and eggs and get more money. She continued, with more money, I can buy a fancy dress and make all the other milkmaids jealous. Out of excitement, Molly started skipping, forgetting about the milk and her pails.

Soon the milk started spilling over the edges, covering Molly. Drenched, Molly said to herself, oh no, I will never have enough money to buy a chicken now. She went home with her empty pails. Oh, my goodness, what happened to you? Molly’s mother asked. I was too busy dreaming about all the things I wanted to buy that I forgot about the pails, she answered. Ooh, Molly, my dear, how many times do I need to say, don’t count your chickens until they hatch?

This is such a sweet and recognizable story. Aren’t we all familiar with Molly? Haven’t we all been her at some time? I certainly grew up with that moral, don’t count your chickens until they hatch. I don’t remember who said it, but I certainly remember it being said time and time again. On the one hand, we can get so excited about our dreams that we lose touch with reality and then the dream becomes impossible. But there’s also a more negative side to this, that we shouldn’t dream at all. There must be a middle ground where we can dream and dream and still stay connected to what’s truly possible. That way we can reach way beyond what we might have expected to achieve.

I think it was Disney who said, if you dream it, you can do it. I used to think about that a lot when I was growing up. I just needed to have a big enough dream and then I could go as far as I wanted. And back then, in Ireland, that wasn’t really the way other people thought I was told that I was getting too big for my boots, that I shouldn’t count my chickens. In business, I think it’s incredibly important to be able to dream and not worry about spilling the milk from the pail. In fact, dreaming is one of the greatest talents of the entrepreneur. The ability to imagine something that doesn’t yet exist.

It’s super exciting, and yes, there is risk, but without the dream, nothing would be possible. The trick is to stay connected to reality, to make sure that your dreaming doesn’t take you beyond what’s possible. Sometimes you might need someone else who can do that reality check for you. A partner, a mentor, perhaps a coach. They can hold the dream, but also keep you accountable to making it real.

I remember going to visit a good friend when I was in film school and also studying English literature. I was so excited about my film projects, and I told her I was going to be a big director. This was my dream. She looked at me and seemed doubtful. I asked her why. She kind of shrugged and said, being a film director, a great film director, well, you need to be completely, singularly focused. There needs to be nothing else in your life, now and forever. Is that you? And she reminded me about how much I love writing, how much I was enjoying my theater class, and how I was always looking into business ideas, too. She said, Lisa, you’re too multifaceted. You’re not going to make it as a director.

Well, that was pretty harsh. But for years, I thanked her for it. I felt that she was right. I was interested in too many things. I had a different path. Had I continued to follow an impossible dream, I might have lost time and energy. That would have taken a toll. All the milk would have been spilt. And I do sometimes think about what might have happened if I’d held that dream just a little bit longer. I guess that’s the big dilemma. How can we dream without spilling all the pail? How can we hold reality and possibility in the same space and with equal measure? I don’t know that I have the answer, but I’m certainly compelled to try to figure it out. In business, I want to keep dreaming, keep nurturing creative and wild ideas. I don’t want to get so practical and down to earth that I lose the magic, because it’s the magic that makes it all worthwhile.

I’m Lisa Bloom, and you’ve been listening to Once Upon a Business. You can find out more about me at story-coach.com. That’s story-coach.com. Once Upon a Business is part of the Mirasee FM Podcast Network, which also includes such shows as Making it and Just Between Coaches. To catch the great episodes that are coming up on Once Upon a Business, please like and follow us on Mirasee FM’s YouTube channel or your favorite podcast player. And if you enjoyed the show, please leave us a comment or a starred review. It’s the best way to help us get these ideas to more people. Thank you. We’ll see you next time.