Think Big, Start Small, Then Scale Or Fail Fast

What you can learn from the farmer with the goose that laid golden eggs

You’ve probably heard the story of the farmer and his goose that could lay eggs made of solid gold. If you haven’t, here is the TL: DR.

A farmer and his wife had a goose that laid a golden egg daily. Pressure for more gold from the gold merchants made them assume the bird must contain a great lump of gold inside, and to get the gold, they killed her.

To their dismay, they discovered that what was inside the goose wasn’t different from every other goose.

The foolish pair, thus hoping to become rich all at once, deprived themselves of the gain they were assured daily.

How does this story apply to us as business people? Most entrepreneurs try to scale their businesses when it isn’t the right time.

I understand that pressure, whether it be external or internal, might make you push your business to make more.

And that is alright. But becoming too ambitious and scaling when the time is not right can cause burnout, huge losses, discredit your brand, and ultimately cripple your business.

Here’s a quote by Mats Lederhausen that seems apt for this scenario —

“Think big, start small, then scale or fail fast.”

Did you enjoy this article? You can read many more like this from talented and creative writers for only $5/month (Your subscription supports us too).

Join Medium today and read life-changing stories and insightful articles anytime and anywhere. Click here to join.