Both Remedy and Solution Lie in the Mind!

A young businessman, trapped in a spiral of debt and overwhelmed by despair, had grown exhausted one day from the relentless phone calls of creditors. Seeking a moment of relief, he stepped out of his office and sat on a park bench, burying his head in his hands as he anxiously pondered how to save his company from bankruptcy. At that very moment, an elderly man wearing a hat and overcoat appeared in front of him, sat down beside him on the bench, and said, “I can see that something is troubling you greatly, my son.” Without even looking at the elderly man’s face, the businessman, in a sorrowful and hopeless tone, explained his situation. After listening, the old man said, “I think I can help you,” asked for the businessman’s name, and then wrote him a check. Handing the check to him, he added, “Exactly one year from today, meet me here on this same bench and repay this money,” before quickly walking away.

As the businessman stared in astonishment at the man whose face he couldn’t even see clearly—and whom he hadn’t even had a chance to thank—his eyes fell on the 10 million liras check in his hand. When he saw that it had been written by one of the country’s wealthiest businessmen, he couldn’t believe his eyes. “This amount could solve all my problems right now,” he thought, but instead of cashing it immediately, he decided to keep it safely in his safe for a while. Simply knowing that the check was there gave him a long-missed sense of relief and security. He thought, “If things get any worse, I can always cash this check.” With this renewed sense of optimism, the businessman began to approach his work from a very different perspective. From that day on, he started turning his business around, making significant sales and gradually paying off all his debts. His company, which had recently been on the brink of bankruptcy, soon achieved one success after another. Ironically, the check still remained uncashed in his safe.

Exactly one year later, the businessman went to the same park, at the same day and time, carrying an indescribable sense of pride and happiness at being able to return the 10-million-lira check without ever cashing it. As agreed, the elderly man was indeed waiting at the same bench where they had first met. Just as the young businessman was about to hand the check back to him, a nurse hurriedly ran up to them in a panic. After linking her arm with the elderly man, she turned to the young businessman and said, “I hope he hasn’t disturbed you.” She continued, explaining that he had been running away from home for years, introducing himself to people as a famous businessman, but in reality he was an ordinary person and the check in the businessman’s possession was worthless. With that explanation, the nurse and the elderly man walked away together.

The young businessman, who had achieved so much over the course of a year by relying on what he believed to be a valid check, remained motionless on the bench for a long while. He realized that what had changed his life was not the money he thought he desperately needed at that moment a year ago. Instead, the source of his remarkable success had been the confidence and inner strength that belief had awakened within him. Looking up at the sky, he simply smiled.

So what do you really need in order to succeed? And what would happen if you behaved as if you already had what you believe you lack? What would you lose, and what might you gain? Keep in mind that, in many cases, the remedy to many troubles and the solution to many problems lie within our own minds.