Life Lessons I’ve Learned From Fishing
Like life, fishing is full of good, better, and bad days. Both going fishing and life are full of exciting moments- and dull ones. One day you catch nothing, and the next day you catch the big one. Some key lessons translate from fishing to life.
There are a lot of fish in the sea.
I know we’ve all heard of this one by now. There are! While fishing, it’s a good idea to move around whatever body of water you’re at. You can’t catch all of the fish from the same spot!
My mom, brother, and I were fishing at one of our favorite spots when we heard splashing in the water behind us. My little brother and I ran across the road to see what was going on.
CARP. We saw carp in a place we always go to catch bass.
You can perceive this lesson in many different ways. Maybe your current job isn’t working out. There are lots of fish in the sea (other employers). Are your friends holding you back? There’s more fish in the sea (new friends).
No matter where life takes us, there will always be more fish in the sea. Never be afraid to move from your current spot to see what else is out there. It may be the best thing you ever did!
We would have never known there were carp splashing if we stayed in our usual spot.
If something isn’t working, try changing your strategy.
You can sit by the pond all day and never catch one fish. It is very disappointing. Yeah, you can blame the weather and the pond. Shit, blame the fish.
Have you tried changing what you are doing? You can’t catch all of the fish on the same lure.
These carp wanted nothing to do with my green rubber catch-all worm, so we had to improvise. We made dough balls. I had never made these before, so it was fun to learn.
If something in life isn’t working out, it’s easy to jump to blaming outside factors. Instead of playing the blame game, you can switch up your strategy. You may find yourself learning new things!
I started to feel the carp tug on my line; this wouldn’t have happened if I never changed my green worm.
Waking up earlier pays off.
Yes, early-bird catches the worm, and so does the early fish! The best fishing I have ever done was in the early hours as the sun was coming up. The fish know to be up early, so I’ll be up early as well!
We got up early for days religiously. Each day we left the house as the birds were chirping. We were all armed with our rods and newly made dough balls.
The sound of the alarm going off before the sun makes an appearance can be scary. It’s okay. It will become easier with time, and you’ll have more time to yourself in the morning. Your day will be long, and you have more time to get more finished!
Patience
If fishing teaches you anything, it will teach you patience. I mean, It’s called fishing, not catching. After patience, the feeling of a fish on the end of the rod is the best explosion of excitement one can get (in my bias opinion).
With my dough ball on the line and many failed attempts, I finally hooked a carp. As I was reeling the massive fish in, I lost it. My line broke. I was angry. But of course, I had to try again.
The next time I had one of the fish on the line, I pulled it to shore. My brother was ready with the net. While trying to bring in the fish, we had a realization. It wasn’t going to fit in the net.
I was ready to lose my patience.
My brother has much more patience than I. Through fishing together, he has helped me discover more patience. We had to get a larger net. The third time is a charm; am I right?
After quite a few more failed attempts, I had another carp on my line. I slowly fought this fish to the shore. This time we were ready. My brother sacrificed his dry shoes and jumped in the water to net the carp for me. With lots of patience, I caught my first carp.
Sometimes I get so excited that I worry myself into a panic. My little brother and fishing buddy will have to remind me: “You can’t let the fear of losing a fish ruin the experience/excitement of having it on the hook.”
Fishing and going through life both require patience. Whether you are waiting for a job interview, phone call, or waiting for your package to arrive, you must practice patience.
Many incredible experiences in life take patience. And after having patience, we might experience a little fear or too much excitement. Over many years, fishing has taught me to stay level-headed but always to enjoy and love the moments as they come.
It’s all a learning experience.
In both fishing and life, you’re not going to learn everything in one day. We’ll get better in time. Here is where all of the lessons come together. Each day we build the skills we need to carry us through our next adventure in life. When we take another fishing trip, we’re gaining knowledge to catch more fish.
