Interesting
and very thoughtful message for all to read. This is special!

A
successful business man was growing old and knew it was time to choose a
successor to take over the business.

    

Instead
of choosing one of his Directors or his children, he decided to do something
different. He called all the young executives in his company together.

 

He
said, “It is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have
decided to choose one of you. “The young executives were Shocked, but the
boss continued.”I am going to give each one of you a SEED today – one very
special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one
year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given you. 

I
will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose will be   the next CEO.”

 

One
man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received a seed. He
went home and excitedly, told his wife the  
story. She helped him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the
seed. Every day, he would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After
about three weeks, some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds
and the plants that were beginning to grow.

 

Jim
kept checking his seed, but nothing ever grew

Three
weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still 

nothing.
By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn’t have a plant and
he felt like a failure.

 

Six
months went by — still nothing in Jim’s pot. He just knew he had killed his
seed. Everyone else had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing Jim didn’t
say anything to his colleagues, however, he just kept watering and fertilizing
the soil – He so wanted the seed to grow.

  

A
year finally went by and all the young executives of the company brought their
plants to the CEO for inspection.

 

Jim
told his wife that he wasn’t going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to
be honest about what happened. Jim felt sick to his stomach, it was going to be
the most embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He
took his empty pot to the board room.

  

When
Jim arrived, he was amazed at the variety of plants grown by the other
executives. They were beautiful – in all shapes and sizes. Jim put his empty
pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed, a few felt sorry for him!

  

When
the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and greeted his young executives.

 

Jim
just tried to hide in the back. “My, what great plants, trees and flowers
you have grown,” said the CEO. “Today one of you will be appointed
the next CEO!”

   

All
of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his empty pot. He
ordered the Financial Director to bring him to the front. Jim was terrified…
He thought, “The CEO knows I’m a failure! Maybe he will have me
fired!”

 

When
Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what had happened to his seed,

Jim
told him the story.

 

 

The
CEO asked everyone to sit down except Jim. He looked at Jim, and then announced
to the young executives, “Behold your next Chief Executive Officer!

 

His
name is “Jim!” Jim couldn’t believe it. Jim couldn’t even grow his
seed.

“How
could he be the new CEO?” the others said.

 

Then
the CEO said, “One year ago today, I gave everyone in this room a seed. I
told you to take the seed, plant it, water it, and bring it back to me today.
But I gave you all boiled seeds; they were dead – it was not possible for them
to grow.

  

All
of you, except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you
found that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I
gave you. Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot
with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief
Executive Officer!”

  

*
If you plant honesty, you will reap trust 

*
If you plant goodness, you will reap friends

*
If you plant humility, you will reap greatness

*
If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment

*
If you plant consideration, you will reap perspective

*
If you plant hard work, you will reap success

*
If you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation

So,
be careful what you plant now;

it
will determine what you will reap later.   

Think
about   this for a minute.