The Donkey Seller – The story of why you can’t please everyone

The Story

A long time ago, in a small village, there lived a farmer, his son and their donkey.

One day, the farmer wanted to raise some money by selling his donkey. Their donkey was plump with shiny and smooth hair, and the farmer thought they could get a good price for it if they can sell it at the market.

But the market was very far from their village, and he worried the walk would make the donkey thin and tired, and that it’s price would go down. After thinking over it a bit, the farmer and his son came up with an idea. They could carry the donkey instead. They can tie it’s legs to a pole and shoulder each end. Happy with their solution, they began their journey to the market.

However, the father and son didn’t get very far on the highway before some other travellers laughed and jeered at them. “What a strange thing. To this day, I had never seen two men carrying a donkey” called one. “Horses and donkeys are meant to carry men on their back, not the other way around!”

Not liking to be laughed at, the farmer stopped and thought about what the stranger just said. “I suppose we do look a bit silly,” he admitted to his son. “Let’s take the donkey down. And son, you climb on the donkey and ride him instead.” Pleased with themselves, they continued to the market.

But again it wasn’t long before another traveller came past them and scolded the son. “What an ungrateful son.” shouted the old man. “ Riding in comfort on the back of the donkey whilst his father who raised him and took care of him, has to walk behind him. Shame on you”. Feeling embarrassed, the father and son thought that it would be better if he rides the donkey instead. They set off again, content this time everyone will be happy.

But not everyone thought it was such a good idea. As they approached the village, they came across an elderly woman who was not pleased with what she saw. “Your child looks so tired. Why don’t you let your child ride instead. After all, you are stronger than the young boy right?” Feeling a bit frustrated, the father told the boy to climb on behind him and they will both ride the donkey.

Along the way, they neared a field and the owner cried out. “This donkey is too young and not strong enough to carry both of you. Don’t you have a heart?” They both said nothing, got down off the donkey and decided to both just walk to the market.

After such a bad experience, they finally reached the market and sold their donkey for a reasonable price. Not wanting to waste any more time, they set off for home.

The Lesson

The moral of the story is that you can’t please everyone. And in trying to please everyone, you can sometimes end up not pleasing anyone.

Now, trying to please others is not a bad thing. It’s simple human nature and doing things that make other people happy will in turn make us feel happy. It’s just that if you let other people’s happiness drive all your decisions, it can leave you with unnecessary pressure, anxiety and fear.

The desire to please others is something that is instilled in us from a young age. As a child, it may be from our classmates, parents and teacher. And as an adult it may be from our colleagues, bosses and friends. And more recently, our twitter, instagram, youtube and other social platforms friends and followers.

Now think about all these people for a bit. They will all have a slightly different view of what makes them happy and in turn what they want. They can have different religious beliefs and political stances. They all grew up in different suburbs and even countries. Raised by different parents, and hung out with different people. Be of different ages and social status. They will have different interests and opinions.

And not only do they differ, but sometimes, they’re the exact opposite. In other words, sometimes, for one person to win, someone else has to lose. So, the best you can do is just do you. It doesn’t matter what other people say or think about you. The most important thing is doing what makes you happy. And as long as deep down inside, you are doing things for the right reason and right motivation, you should never feel sorry for it.