The story doesn't end here...

Once upon a time a tortoise and a hare had an argument about who was faster. They decided to settle the argument with a race. They agreed on a route and started off the race. The hare shot ahead and ran briskly for some time. Then seeing that he was far ahead of the tortoise, he thought he'd sit under a tree for some time and relax before continuing the race. He sat under the tree and soon fell asleep. The tortoise plodding on overtook him and soon finished the race, emerging as the undisputed champ! The hare woke up and realized that he'd lost the race.

The moral - "Slow and steady wins the race. This is the version of the story that we've all grown up with." Correct ?

THE STORY DOESN'T END HERE

there are few more interesting things ..... it continues as follows ......

The hare was disappointed at losing the race and he did some soul-searching. He realized that he'd lost the race only because he'd been over-confident, careless and lax. If he had not taken things for granted, there's no way the tortoise could have beaten him. So he challenged the tortoise to another race. The tortoise agreed. This time, the hare went all out and ran without stopping from start to finish. He won by several miles.

The moral - " Fast and consistent will always beat the slow and steady.It's good to be slow and steady; but it's better to be fast and reliable."

THE STORY DOESN'T END HERE

The tortoise did some thinking this time, and realized that there's no way it can beat the hare in a race the way it was currently formatted. It thought for a while, and then challenged the hare to another race, but on a slightly different route. The hare agreed. They started off. In keeping with his self-made commitment to be consistently fast, the hare took off and ran at top speed until he came to a broad river. The finishing line was a couple of kilometers on the other side of the river. The hare sat there wondering what to do. In the meantime the tortoise trundled along, got into the river, swam to the opposite bank, continued walking and finished the race.

The moral - "First identify your core competency and then change the playing field to suit your core competency."

THE STORY STILL HASN'T ENDED

The hare and the tortoise, by this time, had become pretty good friends and they did some thinking together. Both realized that the last race could have been run much better. So they decided to do the last race again, but to run as a team this time. They started off, and this time the hare carried the tortoise till the riverbank. There, the tortoise took over and swam across with the hare on his back. On the opposite bank, the hare again carried the tortoise and they reached the finishing line together. They both felt a greater sense of satisfaction than they'd felt earlier.

The moral - "It's good to be individually brilliant and to have strong core competencies; but unless you're able to work as a team and build on each other's core competency, you'll always perform below par because there will always be situations at which you'll do poorly and someone else does well.

Teamwork is mainly about situational leadership, letting the person with the relevant core competency for a situation take leadership. Note that neither the hare nor the tortoise gave up after failures. The hare decided to work harder and put in more effort after his failure. The tortoise changed his strategy because he was already working as hard as he could." In life, when faced with failure sometimes, it is appropriate to work harder and put in more effort. Sometimes it is appropriate to change strategy and try something different … and sometimes it is appropriate to do both. The hare and the tortoise also learnt another vital lesson. When we stop competing against a rival and instead start competing against the situation, we perform far better.

To sum up - The story of the hare and tortoise has much to say: Chief among them are that

A. Fast and consistent will always beat slow and steady;
B. Work to your competencies;

C. Pooling resources and working as a team will always beat individual performers;

D. Never give up when faced with failure & finally,

E. Compete against the situation - Not against a rival.

Ramesh Chittur
Director of Information Technology

Alcohol and the Economic Downturn

While many of the international blog visitors reading this may be cushioned from the downturn in the US economy, there are plenty of you that are personally impacted by the latest recession. To those that are thriving in the current economy, go grab a coffee and watch a re-run of Seinfeld - this isn't for you.

It's no secret that direct and inverse relationships exist between an individual's disposable income and what they choose to buy. For example, when money is available, an extra vacation might be suddenly accessible. When money is tight, sandwiches make a viable dinner instead of the filet mignon that might otherwise be served that evening. But what about alcohol?

Logic might suggest that a little extra money might permit an expensive bottle of wine at the dinner table instead of water. However, alcohol consumption, specifically excessive alcohol consumption, is often a result of a lack of disposable income. Money woes are numbed by alcohol which only perpetuates the problem. So what can you do about it? Well, try to track it.

Try to remember how much alcohol you consumed during the "good financial times" and write it down. Perhaps it was two beers after the big game or a glass of wine once per week at dinner. Whatever the amount, exceeding your regular pattern might be a sign you are relying on alcohol to get through a rough patch. Once you have documented your typical pattern, try to cut consumption in half. It will save you money while ensuring you are not relying on alcohol to distract you from other things. Once the economy turns around, all the more reason to celebrate at home with a nice glass of merlot.

Shawn Fitzpatrick
Marketing Manager