Maybe so, maybe not
There’s a story about a Chinese farmer.
The farmer and his son had a horse who helped the family earn a living.
One day, the horse ran away and their neighbors said, “Your horse ran away, what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.”
A few days later, the horse returned home, leading a few wild horses back to the farm. The neighbors said, “Your horse has returned and brought several horses home with him. What great luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.”
Later that week, the farmer’s son was trying to break one of the horses and it threw him to the ground, breaking his leg. The neighbors said, “Your son broke his leg, what terrible luck!” The farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not.”
A few weeks later, soldiers marched through town, recruiting boys for the army. They did not take the farmer’s son because he had a broken leg. The neighbors said, “Your boy is spared, what tremendous luck!”
To which the farmer replied, “Maybe so, maybe not. We’ll see.”
So what’s the moral of the story?
You’re going to have bad breaks and setbacks as a business owner, like not getting the contract you wanted or having a client terminate.
You’re also going to have good breaks and wins, like getting invited to speak at a conference or having a book proposal accepted.
The key is not to get too high or too low. Something bad happening today could create an opportunity for something good to happen in the future.
The only thing you can do is wait and see.