Adapt or perish

Just as you must adapt to the water's flow while swimming and the ball's movement while playing tennis, you must adapt to the market and your customers when running a business without ego.

Here's the key insight:

Adapt to the Market, Not Force the Market to Adapt to You

In swimming, you work with the water's resistance and buoyancy—you can't command it to behave differently. In tennis, you respond to where the ball actually goes, not where you wish it would go. Similarly, in business:

Read and Respond to Customer Needs Your customers tell you what they want through their behavior, feedback, and purchases. An ego-driven entrepreneur tries to convince customers they need what the business offers. A humble entrepreneur adapts the offering to what customers actually need.

Flow with Market Conditions Economic changes, competitor moves, technological shifts—these are like currents in water. You can't control them, but you can learn to navigate them skillfully. Fighting against market reality out of pride or stubbornness leads to exhaustion and failure.

Be Flexible in Your Approach Just as a swimmer adjusts their stroke to different water conditions and a tennis player adjusts their stance for each shot, you must constantly adapt your strategy, products, and operations based on real-world feedback—not on your original vision if it's not working.

Stay Present and Responsive Both swimming and tennis require constant awareness and adjustment in the moment. Business is the same—you need to stay alert to what's actually happening (customer complaints, cash flow issues, team morale) rather than being lost in your ego's narrative about how things "should" be.

The essence: Adapt to reality, don't expect reality to adapt to your ego.