Bahram* lives in Limpopo, one of the poorest provinces in South Africa. Their house stands around 10 kilometers away from the Limpopo River, the only water source of their tribe. In order for him and other people in his tribe to get water, they have to walk one and half hours going to the river and another one and a half hours going back to their home.
They have to return to the river at least three times a day to sustain their water needs. This is what they have been doing for the past five generations.
Every man in the tribe does this back-breaking job every day, but Bahram had a different mindset from anyone else.
“I don’t want my son to do the same thing that my father and I have been doing for the longest time,” he said to himself. “I want to have my own supply of water here in my house,” he added.
So every time Bahram goes to the river to fetch water, he digs a short canal of about 5 meters in length and fills the flooring with stones, starting from the river going to his home.
Other men and women in the tribe made fun of him. “You are out of your mind...Fetching water is hard enough, digging a canal is too much,” they said. They would always laugh at him and think he’s crazy. Even his own family had doubts about his plan. “We have been living here for too long and we survived because of our way of living. You do not have to do this for it will only make you more tired.”
But Bahram didn’t mind whatever other people thought about him. He just continued on what he had been doing.
As the years passed, more and more people in his tribe looked at him as a crazy old man. “You are a fool! You cannot change the direction of the river,” they said. But Bahram didn’t listen at all. He kept on digging and digging the canal from the river going to his home.
Finally, after six years of extra effort, sacrifice, and perseverance, water from Limpopo River flowed to Bahram’s home. He finally had his own outlet of unlimited water right in front of his house. The people who once made fun of him, doubted him, and didn’t support him, were now asking for water from him.
Bahram felt so blessed because he no longer needed to fetch water for his family. The water is now flowing towards his home. He has more than enough, and he is also able so share water to others.
Lessons from Bahram
1.
He sets a clear GOAL: “I want to have my own water supply in my house.”
2.
He focused on his WHY: “I don’t want my son to do the same thing I’ve been doing.”
3.
He knows his HOW: He digs a five-meter canal every time he goes by the river.
4.
He never quits: Even though most of the people were against him, no one, even his family, was able to stop him.
Want to have a better financial status? Be like Bahram. Small sacrifices, when done effectively and consistently, come with bigger results. An income stream does not come to you on its own. You have to dig for it. You don’t have to dig big for one time. Dig small but dig consistently, and every time you feel tired, think of your WHY: Why do you want to be rich? Why do you want to have a passive income? Then it will give you more energy to continue digging.
Dig small, earn more!
*Bahram means “smiting of resistance” or “victorious”
