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A WEEK ago my friends and I decided to go to Susugi Dam in Banket for a change of scenery after spending the whole of December and January at Darwendale Dam.
Our tackle dealer introduced us to the owners of this wonderful place just a few kilometres away from Mazvikadei Leisure resort.
We then got down to business, there was no moon and no rain, so we thought that the conditions for fishing were extremely favourable.
However, we struggled to catch bass the whole day and at the end of it two of my friends, Alan and Alister advised me that they were staying behind to try again the following day (Sunday).
I was tempted to stay as well but since I did not have a “multiple entry” visa at home I came back to Harare.
Around 1500 hours on Sunday Alan phoned and told me that they had an extremely rewarding morning.
They had filled a 25-litre bucket with fish and were on their way to Harare.
This was not the first time to experience and hear of failure on Fridays/Saturdays and success on the following day.
This was in fact the fifth time.
At one point it was failure for two consecutive days and success on the third day.
How long can fish postpone their desire for food?
Can they stop feeding forever?
The answer is a definite no because at some point fish has to feed. There is no way fish can go for months without food.
Common sense dictates that no matter how bad the weather conditions can be, at a certain time fish have to feed in order to survive. The million-dollar question is whether the day you go out to fish coincides with the day they want to feed.
Preparation might be excellent but if the day is a bad one, your catch might be not that good.
Therefore you still need to be in the water for a longer period to increase your chances of a good catch. This is referred to in simpler language as “staying power”.
The gospel of persistence, perseverance and patience has been preached to all of us but there is very little that has been said about overcoming our harshest critics on the fateful day. The day of failure is one where you are fired from work or one were the deal that you were anxiously waiting for falls through.
We are all capable of narrating our successful days but we are not so comfortable talking about of our days in the wilderness.
Our two harshest critics are our families/friends and ourselves. How do you convince yourself that you have lost your contract/ company/house/job?
On the fateful Saturday I got home from Banket around 2100hrs.
My wife and daughter were waiting for my arrival as usual.
“E Vadzimba (Mr Hunter) titambire (what have you brought) my wife said. “I had a bad day,” I replied.
“Nhava izere mhepo zvakare here?” (You did not catch anything again?) ‘Unfortunately yes,” I replied.
“Ko nhai Daddy munodii kumbomiramira murimudhamu?” (Why don’t you take your fishing seriously Dad?) With these sarcastic words my daughter went to sleep.
I am not going to punish you with further details of my ordeal. I am sure you can guess how I felt.
Dealing with your family members during your darkest hours is no easy task. The worst affected are those who have a reputation for delivering like the “bass master”.
Sometime in November last year I met my college friend in Vumba during a strategic planning seminar.
The executive car he was driving chaffed me. Without being told I was convinced that he was doing extremely well.
During dinner he told me that he was fired by the bank he was working for without compensation in 1999.
His sin, he said was that he authorised a loan to a company in Bulawayo without following laid down procedure despite the fact that the company was performing.
He tried to seek reinstatement but failed. After sometime he got his current job. The moral of his life is that he had to go down in order to be uplifted. He couldn’t have got his new job if he was still employed by the bank.
His breakthrough came as a result of being dismissed from the bank. His dismissal ignited his brains to seek further opportunities elsewhere.
His dismissal was a catalyst, which opened new windows of opportunities. Opportunity seems to follow misfortunes.
But how many of us can think that way? How many friends and family members can help us to think positively during our times of trials and tribulations?
l The writer is a managing consultant at CLC Training International.
[email protected].