Wake Up Before You Drift

A note to young leaders.

A student once asked a Zen master: “What does it mean to be awake?”

The guru replied:

“A homeless man in London is huddled on an embankment of the River Thames, shivering under a tattered cloak in grey drizzle, his stomach empty.

He is just beginning to drift into an uneasy sleep when a chauffeur-driven Rolls-Royce pulls to the curb.

Out steps a beautiful young woman. ‘Poor fellow, surely you’re not planning on spending the night here on the embankment?’

‘Yes,’ he replies.

‘I won’t have it. You’re coming to my house and you’re going to spend a comfortable night and eat a decent dinner.’

She insists on him getting into the car and they ride out of London and soon arrive at a vast mansion on sprawling grounds. A butler ushers him in, leads him to a guest room with silk sheets, and serves him the finest dinner he’s ever tasted.

Later that night, the woman taps softly on his door. She finds him still awake, staring at the ceiling in disbelief. ‘Are you comfortable?’ she asks. ‘Is the room warm enough?’

‘It’s perfect,” he replies.

She smiles and sits on the edge of the bed. ‘Perhaps you’re still a bit lonely,’ she says softly. ‘Move over a little.’

He moves over – and falls straight into the Thames.

—

We’re all living in a bubble of collective hypnosis.

We dream of easy riches and fleeting pleasures, but the journey we long for lies elsewhere.

Wake up. You are not a pauper.

Rollover. The river is waiting for you.