The Market Square

Three fruit sellers arrived at a town with four market squares. Each wanted the busiest location. Through trial and error, they discovered an arrangement: one at the north square, one at the east, one at the south.

The western square saw less traffic, so no one moved there. And no one switched squares either — each seller’s current spot was the best response to where the others had settled.

A newcomer asked, “Is this the best arrangement?”

The oldest seller shrugged. “It’s the arrangement where none of us has a reason to move. Whether it’s best for the town is a different question entirely.”