There was once a busy man who felt there was still room for self-improvement.
He had tried all the motivational speakers, spent a fortune on seminars, read books, and traveled to conferences on how to be more, do more, and achieve more, but he still felt something was missing.
One day, while flicking through a magazine (waiting for his next meeting amid another busy day), he saw an advertisement for a weekend workshop at a Buddhist temple.
Teaching the workshop would be the great master, Rishi.
What was promised in the advertisement was that participants would learn mindfulness, and zen, find inner peace, and a potential pathway to spiritual enlightenment.
The businessman thought to himself, yes, maybe the way to achieve my goals is to go and learn from the great master, he will know the answers.
The weekend finally came.
The businessman traveled to the temple and arrived at the predetermined time of 5 pm on a Friday.
Knocking on the great door of the temple, a young monk greeted the man and told him that the training would soon commence, but please just wait outside.
So the businessman went and sat down on a nearby bench.
An hour passed and he started to get a little concerned and frustrated. He knocked on the door again and was told the same thing by the young monk.
Still in reasonably good spirits the businessman went back to his bench but was starting to get concerned whether he would start his learning that evening.
At 7 pm he knocks again and the monk tells him to return to the temple at first light, the great master is having his dinner.
Accepting this begrudgingly, the man goes and checks into a hotel, setting his alarm for 5 am.
Return to the temple.
The man does as he was instructed, arriving at the temple at sun break. He knocks on the door and the monk greets him but says he is again very sorry, the great master is still asleep and he should return at 8 am.
He agrees, however, cannot hide his frustration any longer and tells the monk he’s annoyed that the seminar isn’t going as he had expected.
8 am comes, and now the master is having breakfast, midday comes and the great Rishi is taking his lunch.
Bored and angry, and with nothing to do but wait around the man grabs a nearby broom propped up against a wall and starts to sweep the courtyard of the temple.
A little later a little old monk comes up to him and with a warm smile says “You’ve got it, perfect, my most sincere congratulations!”
“Got what!?” the businessman says, doing a poor job of hiding his disdain for the whole experience.
The great master Rishi responds “When sweeping, just sweep.”
“I hope you have enjoyed the workshop.”