There was a farmer. He plowed his field, put down manure and fertilizer and planted his seeds. Every day he would check the progress of his crops. He noticed that the neighbor’s crop was growing at a faster rate than his. Only slightly at first and then more noticeably. He was really bothered by this and set out to rectify the situation. He would watch the neighbor and copy everything that he did. First he painted his barn the color of the neighbor’s, and when this didn’t help he went and bought the same brand of tractor. Still the neighbor’s crops were taller than his.

Friends told him he should work to improve his soil, but this would take a lot of work, years of time and not show the immediate results he wanted. Finally he found the answer he was looking for, immediate results! He pulled each plant physically up in the soil. Now his field looked great, a full four inches of growth almost instantly. He went to the neighbor and bragged, "just look at my field." Everyone was impressed with the farmer, until the next day when the plants began to wilt. By the end of the week the entire crop was dead and as a result the farm was lost.