One day, a fisherman was lying on a beautiful beach, with his fishing pole propped up in the sand and his solitary line cast out into the sparkling blue surf. He was enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun and the prospect of catching a fish.

About that time, a crypto trader came walking down the beach, trying to relieve some of the stress of his intense market monitoring. He noticed the fisherman sitting on the beach and decided to find out why this fisherman was fishing instead of striving harder to maximize his profits in life.

“You aren’t going to make much progress that way,” said the crypto trader to the fisherman. “You should be working rather than lying on the beach!”

The fisherman looked up at the crypto trader, smiled, and replied, “And what will my reward be?”

“Well, you could reinvest your earnings, catch more fish, and scale up!” was the crypto trader’s answer.

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman, still smiling.

The crypto trader replied, “You will make money, and you’ll be able to buy better equipment, perhaps a boat, leading to larger catches!”

“And then what will my reward be?” asked the fisherman again.

The crypto trader, getting a little irritated, said, “You could accumulate even more wealth, diversify your portfolio, and eventually hire others to do the hard work for you!”

“And then what will my reward be?” repeated the fisherman.

The crypto trader was now frustrated. “Don’t you understand? You could invest globally, build a massive operation, and let others fish for you while you relax!”

Once again, the fisherman asked, “And then what will my reward be?”

The crypto trader, exasperated, said, “Don’t you get it? You could become so wealthy that you’ll never have to work again! You can spend all your days sitting on this very beach, watching the sunset without a care in the world!”

The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, “And what do you think I’m doing right now?”