I was 12 years old at the time of this fishing adventure and there were about ten other people fishing at the small pond as I was. Roughly an hour went by and there were no jerky movements at the end of my fishing rod to hint that the fish were biting, just utter calm. A few feet to my right was a man who couldn’t stop catching fish. He cast his line into the water and within seconds, he caught a fish. A few seconds later, he caught another one and moments later, yet another one. I reeled in my line, set my fishing rod down and walked toward him to ask what he was doing to catch so many. He told me to make sure to use the right bait. “They like snail.” He advised. So I ran to the little shop by the entrance of the pond and bought some snail. I went back to him with the bag of snail and he baited my hook.
I felt I was ready to compete. I cast my line and eagerly waited for the fish to bite. The woman to my left had a few catches, but the man to my right caught way more. Half an hour had gone by and still, I caught nothing. In my frustration, I hurried over to the same man and asked him again for help. He said, “Son! It’s all in the wrist. Ya gotta move ya wrist ever so slightly, so as to git the attention of the fish underwater. “Technique!” He declared. He tended to his fishing and after watching him, I ran back to my spot, grabbed my fishing pole and mimicked his wrist movements (as best as I could) and repeated the word technique to myself, several times.
Uh-oh! Suddenly, something tugged at my line. I jumped to my feet and turned to look at the man who had given me advice only moments earlier to my right, but he wasn’t there. In fact, as I quickly looked about the pond for him, he was nowhere to be seen and neither was anyone else.
Now, are you wondering about that man? Why did he catch so many more fish than everyone else? And what of the word technique? Do you have a technique, or a skill, or an experience that makes you stand out from the rest? Well, how about this? Are you applying for a job, or a loan, or to a school? If so, what makes you different? Why should anyone pick you over other equally qualified candidates? What makes you, you? Tell your story. Don’t be afraid to tell your story. What are you so afraid of?
Nsimba
