JOKE OF THE DAY: The Manager and the Potatoes

The manager of a large corporation had a heart attack, and his doctor told him to take several weeks off to relax at a farm.

The man reluctantly agreed and soon found himself surrounded by fields, fresh air, and… silence.

But after just a couple of days, he was already bored out of his mind.

Used to a fast-paced office environment full of deadlines, phone calls, and coffee-fueled meetings, he couldn’t stand the slow rhythm of farm life anymore.

So, he went to the farmer and asked if there was any kind of job he could do to keep himself busy.

The farmer smiled knowingly. “Alright,” he said. “If you’re that eager, you can start by cleaning up all the cow manure in the barn.”

He thought that would keep the city man occupied for at least a week. After all, it wasn’t a job for delicate hands or fancy shoes.

But, to his astonishment, the manager finished the task in less than a day.

Every corner of the barn was spotless, the smell was almost gone, and the farmer was impressed.

“Not bad,” the farmer said. “Maybe you’re not as soft as you look.”

The manager grinned. “I’ve managed bigger messes in the office,” he replied confidently.

The next day, the farmer decided to give him something a bit harder.

He handed him a rusty hatchet and said, “Today, your job is to cut off the heads of 500 chickens.”

The farmer was sure the manager would give up halfway through — it was tedious, dirty, and downright unpleasant work.

But when evening came, every chicken was neatly lined up, job perfectly done.

“Good grief,” the farmer muttered. “You really are efficient.”

The manager smiled proudly. “In my line of work, I’ve had to make tough decisions and cut off heads metaphorically for years. Doing it literally wasn’t much different.”

The farmer chuckled but decided to test him one last time.

The next morning, he said, “Alright, city boy. I’ve got a simple one for you today. Take this bag of potatoes and divide them into two boxes — one for the small potatoes and one for the big ones.”

The manager nodded. “Got it. Easy enough.”

The farmer left him there and went to work in the fields.

Hours passed. The sun climbed high and then began to set.

When the farmer returned at the end of the day, he found the manager sitting in front of the same bag of potatoes. Not a single one had been sorted.

Both boxes were still empty.

The farmer blinked in confusion. “What on earth happened? You finished cleaning the barn and slaughtering the chickens in record time, but you can’t sort a few potatoes?”

The manager sighed, looking utterly exhausted.

“You don’t understand,” he said, rubbing his temples. “This job requires making decisions — and I’ve spent my whole life trying to avoid those!”

The Farmer’s Lesson

The farmer laughed so hard he nearly dropped his hat.

“You mean to tell me,” he said between chuckles, “you can handle dirt, blood, and chaos — but a few potatoes stopped you cold?”

The manager looked up sheepishly. “In my office, I just send out memos and let someone else decide. Out here, every potato feels like a performance review.”

The farmer shook his head, still grinning. “Well, maybe that’s why the world’s in the state it’s in. Too many people afraid to pick a potato.”

The two men shared a laugh.

But as silly as it sounded, something in that moment stuck with the manager.

A Change in Perspective

That night, he couldn’t sleep.

He kept thinking about those potatoes — how something so small could completely undo him. He realized that in his corporate life, every decision he made had been buried under meetings, committees, and spreadsheets.

He hadn’t chosen anything for himself in years.

The next morning, when the farmer came down for breakfast, he found the manager in the kitchen, coffee cup in hand, smiling calmly.

“I finished the job,” the manager said.

The farmer frowned. “What job?”

“The potatoes. I sorted them all this morning.”

The farmer’s eyes widened. “You did?”

The manager nodded. “Yeah. I stopped overthinking it. Just went with my gut.”

The farmer grinned. “So, what changed?”

The manager shrugged. “I realized not every decision needs a meeting.”

Weeks Later

By the end of his stay, the manager had learned to wake with the sun, eat without checking his phone, and make small choices without turning them into corporate strategy sessions.

When it was time to return to the city, the farmer clapped him on the shoulder. “You were a good worker,” he said. “If that big fancy company ever kicks you out, you’ve got a job here.”

The manager smiled. “Thank you. But I think I’ve learned something more valuable than a paycheck.”

“Oh yeah? What’s that?”

“That sometimes, the hardest work isn’t cleaning messes or cutting heads — it’s learning to make simple choices with a clear mind.”

The farmer nodded approvingly. “Not bad, city boy. Not bad.”

A Few Months Later…

Back in his office, the manager’s employees noticed something had changed.

He was calmer, kinder, and even — surprisingly — happier.

He didn’t micromanage every decision. He trusted his team.

When someone asked what had changed, he simply smiled and said, “Potatoes.”

“Potatoes?” his assistant asked, confused.

He chuckled. “Let’s just say they taught me more about life than any MBA program ever did.”

Moral of the Story

Sometimes, life’s biggest lessons come from the simplest places.

You can manage empires, make millions, and command respect — but if you can’t decide where to put a potato, maybe it’s time to slow down.

Because wisdom doesn’t always come from boardrooms or books.

Sometimes, it comes from dirt under your nails, a farm’s quiet rhythm… and a bag of unassuming potatoes that remind you what it means to just choose.