Pillow Book of Talmud Wisdom

Chapter 22 Make Use of Every Advantage—Jews on Flexibility

The Jews believe that the process of life is inseparable from the objective environment in which they live. Only by adapting and innovating in the environment in which they live can they create different things. Only by having different things can they make themselves ahead of others. .

As the "Talmud" says: Make full use of all favorable conditions and fully realize your potential.

Find a way out in the objective environment
Among the successful Jews, there is one thing that stands out in common, that is, they are good at using everything.Due to historical reasons, their environments and conditions vary greatly, but no matter in Europe, America, Asia or even Africa, no matter they are engaged in business, science and technology, culture, art or even agriculture, a large number of outstanding talents have emerged. By.One of the most important reasons is that they can adapt to the environment, make full use of all favorable conditions, and give full play to their potential.

The Jews believe that the process of life cannot be separated from the objective environment in which they live, nor can it be separated from their own subjective conditions.Changing the entire objective environment is a matter for the entire society. Individuals or enterprises can only adapt to the objective environment and make good use of the objective conditions.As for the subjective conditions, some can be changed, while others cannot be changed. It depends on one's own efforts and good use of subjective conditions.

Everyone has some conditions that cannot be changed, such as eye color, body height, background and so on.Everyone also has certain conditions that can be changed, such as education level, work ability, physical strength, etc. As long as you study hard, pay attention to methods, and exercise properly, you can improve your education level, enhance your work ability, and strengthen your body.The common problem of some people is that they ignore their own conditions, do not flexibly use and fully develop their own potential, but pray or hope for what they do not have, and it is difficult to succeed in their careers.

The Jews have made great achievements in utilizing all objective and subjective conditions, which is the result of their self-knowledge.Einstein had mediocre grades and no outstanding performance in elementary and middle school.But Einstein was self-aware and knew that he had a deep understanding of physics, so he chose physics when he was in college.Due to his own advantages, he has achieved unprecedented great achievements in physics.But when Israel invited him to be president, he politely declined, knowing that he did not have the conditions to be president.

Godwin, the owner of the world's largest production center in Hollywood, is a Polish-born Jew. His legendary life is a life that makes full use of all favorable conditions.Born in Warsaw in 1882, he lost his father at the age of 11, and his family life was very difficult.In order to make a living, he wandered to London, England, and worked as a child laborer in a blacksmith shop. He was not afraid of hardship and tiredness, and developed a strong body.He did not have the opportunity to enter school, so he used his spare time to study culture by himself.After he came to live in the United States, he went from working part-time to running a glove factory by himself, and finally developed into the boss of a Hollywood production center, a wealthy party.Godwin's development process can be said to be a microcosm of the life of many Jews.

The Jews firmly believe that in this world, as long as you deliberately search, the conditions that can be used are hidden everywhere.They also believe that a lot of opportunities in life exist in your surroundings and in your own potential conditions. The key lies in whether you have developed the will and vision to develop these conditions.People who lament that they can't find the gold mine under their feet are poor and pathetic blind people.Israel was founded in the mid-20s, and its site was selected in an area dominated by deserts that lacked resources and had harsh climate conditions.However, they made full use of the technology and talents possessed by the Jews to transform the desert, create drip irrigation, and transform a barren land into a country with developed agriculture. important source.

Jews must do careful feasibility studies beforehand in any investment and trading activities.Once you decide to do a certain business or investment, you must make short-term, medium-term and long-term plans.And do a good job in the strategy of adapting to the situation, and adopt it according to the development of the situation.

After the short-term plan is formulated and invested, even if they find that the actual situation is quite different from the prior forecast, they will not be surprised or shaken, and they will actively invest in the original plan and implement it.After the implementation of the short-term plan, although the effect is not as good as expected, they will still launch the second set of plans, continue to invest more, and try to complete the implementation of various strategies.If the second set of plans has not achieved the predicted effect after further implementation, and there are no definite facts and evidence to prove that the future will improve, then the Jews will resolutely give up the transaction or investment.Most people think that if you give up a business that has already implemented two sets of plans, wouldn't it be a waste of all your previous efforts and a lot of investment?But the Jews are poised, without complaint or regret.They believe that although the business is not satisfactory, it does not leave hidden dangers for the future, and will not be troubled by a bunch of messes in future work. Short-term pain is worse than long-term pain.

This is the Jewish business experience.

It is indeed clever that Jewish businessmen can change their strategies and tactics according to changes in the external environment, especially changes in competitors.Today's market is full of changes and fierce competition. Whether an enterprise can adapt to this change is the key to its survival and development.

Wit is the chip to win
There was a wealthy Jewish man who was dying of illness and his death was approaching, so he dictated a suicide note and asked someone to take notes:

"I leave all my property to the faithful servant who delivered this will to you; my son Yudia, you may choose one of my properties."

The Jewish rich man died soon, and the slave got the property. He excitedly showed the suicide note to the rabbi, and then went to see the rich man's son with the rabbi.The rabbi said to the rich man's son Yudiah:
"Your father has given property to slaves, you can only take one of them, you choose!"

Yudia said without hesitation:
"I choose this slave."

Yudia not only owned slaves, but also had property inheritance rights.

The rich man was very clever, and his son was not with him when he died, so he came up with this plan, otherwise the slaves would embezzle his property without notifying his son.Like a father, like a son, his son is also extremely intelligent.

Keeping a secret is a reliable litmus test, but how to keep a secret is not an easy task.People often hear from A that the secret is passed on to B, and it seems that they trust B very much. In fact, he has failed A's trust in him.A rabbi said: "As long as the secret is in your hands, you are the master of the secret, but when the secret is spoken, you are its slave."

The salesman Fernando is a Jew. Once he went to a small town on Friday, but because he was penniless and unable to board and lodging, he went to the deacon of the synagogue. The deacon said to him: "There are so many poor people here on Friday. Every house is full, with the exception of Simmel's, the owner of the gold and silver shop, but he never accepts guests."

Fernando said with certainty: "He will definitely accept me."

Afterwards, he went to Simmel's house, and after knocking on the door, he mysteriously pulled Simmel aside, took a small, heavy bag the size of a brick from his coat pocket, and whispered, "Excuse me , How much is gold the size of a brick worth?"

The owner of the gold and silver store's eyes lit up, but it was the Sabbath now, and he couldn't continue to discuss business. In order to complete the business, he hurriedly asked Fernando to stay at his house and talk about it after sunset tomorrow.

So, throughout the Sabbath, Fernando was treated with great hospitality.When it was time to do business on Saturday night, Simmel urged Fernando with a big smile on his face to take out the "goods" and have a look.Fernando pretended to be surprised and said, "I don't have any gold. I just want to ask how much gold the size of a brick is worth."

Fernando's wit lies in cleverly exploiting Simmel's eagerness for money and tricking him with false hints.

Also, in business activities, there are always times when people are stolen or cheated, and others renege on their debts, so let us see how the Jews dealt with this situation tactfully.

A Jewish businessman came to a market to do business. When he learned that all the goods here would be sold out in a few days, he decided to stay and wait. However, he had a lot of gold coins with him, and there was no bank at that time. It's not safe in hotels either.

After repeated thinking, he came to a deserted place alone, dug a hole in the ground, and buried the money, but when he returned to the place where the money was hidden the next day, he found that the money had been lost.He stood there blankly, repeatedly recalling the scene of hiding the money. At that time, there was no one around, so he couldn't figure out how the money was lost.Just when he was wondering, he accidentally looked up and found a house in the distance. Maybe the owner of this house just saw him bury the money through the hole in the wall, and then dug the money away.So, how can you get your money back?After careful consideration, he went to the owner of the house and said politely: "You must be very smart because you live in the city. Now I have something to ask you. Is it okay?" The man replied enthusiastically: "Of course." Can."

The Jewish businessman went on to say: "I am a foreigner who came here to do business. I have two purses with me, one containing 800 gold coins and the other containing 500 gold coins. I have buried the small purse in a place where no one is around. But I don’t know if this big money bag should be handed over to someone who can be trusted for safekeeping, or is it safer to continue to bury it?”

The owner of the house replied: "Because you are a newcomer, no one should believe it. You'd better bury the big wallet together in the place where the small wallet was hidden!"

As soon as the Jewish merchant left, the greedy man immediately took out the stolen money bag and put it in its original place.This made the Jewish businessman hiding nearby very happy. As soon as the man left, he immediately dug out the money bag and ran away.The Jewish businessman was able to get back what fell into other people's pockets, and his means were indeed clever.Because he knows that everyone has greed, and greed expands infinitely. To get the thief to hand over the money can only arouse his greater greed.

The Jews believe that it is difficult to have smooth sailing in the business field. How to calmly deal with difficulties and how to deal with dangers wittily are the necessary qualities for a successful businessman. What's more, you are not a smart man, and others are smart men?

People often build boundaries around their lives
People often build boundaries around their lives, or they live within limitations imposed on them by others.Some of these limitations are imposed by family and friends, and some are self-imposed.Many people set limits on themselves, thinking that they will not surpass their parents in their lifetime, thinking that they are unresponsive, and thinking that they lack the potential and energy possessed by others, so they will undoubtedly fail to achieve some goals.

A farmer exhibited a pumpkin shaped like a water bottle. Visitors were amazed when they saw it, and asked how it was grown.The farmer explained: "When the pumpkin is the size of a thumb, I cover it with a water bottle, and once it fills up the mouth of the bottle, it stops growing."

The same is true for people. Self-limitation is to lock yourself in a cage in your heart, just like a pumpkin covered by a water bottle. It is tantamount to giving up the opportunity for yourself to grow, and growth is of course limited.

There is such a man who has many problems getting along with his wife. The wife often complains that he is selfish, irresponsible, and never cared about her.Someone asked him: "Why don't you communicate well with your wife?" He replied: "My nature is like this. There is no way, I am a big man." This man's explanation of his behavior is his self-definition.This stems from the fact that he has always been like this in the past. In fact, he is saying: "I am set in this respect, and I will continue to be the way I have been for a long time." Leave yourself with problems that can never be changed.

Identifying who you are - "I've always been this way, that's who I am" attitude reinforces your inertia and hinders growth.Because we tend to use "self-description" as a justification for not seeking change; more importantly, it helps you hold on to an absurd concept: if you can't do it well, don't do it.

Once you have established who the ego is, you are denying the ego.When one has to conform to the self-definition on the label, the self does not exist.Instead of challenging these excuses and the self-destructive thoughts behind them, they just accept them, admitting that they have always been this way and that it will eventually lead to self-destructiveness.

For a person, it is much easier to describe yourself than to change yourself.Whenever you run away from something, or gloss over a personality flaw, you can always use the "I've always been like this" excuse.In fact, after using these definitions many times, through the mind and into the subconscious, you also start to believe that you are like this. At that time, you seem to be fixed, and it seems that you are destined to be like this in the future.Whenever those "escape" phrases come up in you, correct yourself out loud.

Change "that's me" to "that's me before";
Change "I can't" to "If I try, I can change";
Change "That was my nature" to "It used to be my nature";
Any "how I am" that gets in the way of growth can be changed to "what I choose to be".Don't be a trapped animal, you have to break out of the self-made cage, be a true self, and develop your potential to become your true self.

(End of this chapter)