Interview with Mr. Testudinidae (Mr. Tortoise), the Legend

Today we are interviewing a species, a personality which has assumed legendary proportions over the generations, about whom we learnt in our schools.  To the ordinary human beings, they may be just a species that co-exists in the eco-system and not have anything to do with us.  But legend and old wives tales have it that they have served to teach us some very important lessons in life.  New management experts have given them these theories a new dimension, of how peaceful co-existence and team work can lead to “win-win” situations for all.  We are talking of the Famous Tortoise who lives up to an average of 200 years and can travel 0.27 km/h.

CC:     You are a legend.  How does it feel to be referred to as someone who could never win a race but ended up winning twice?

TT:     Well, I don’t think I am a legend but if that what’s you all prefer to call me, I am fine with it.  Personally, I didn’t intend to be a part of the race that the Hare challenged me to.  So I had a very interesting dialogue with myself in solitude.  The first question that came to my mind was “What if I did?”  Why should I leave chances to fate?  Anything can happen to the opposition? Well, he has through generations been gifted with this amazing skill of speed.  But has he ever been challenged to prove it?  I took a chance and the result is there for all to see.

CC:       What if you had lost by a good margin?

TT:      Oh yes! There was always a good chance for that to happen.  By the time I would have covered one percent of the distance, he would have already crossed it.  And it happened that way too, which is why the Hare stopped to take a big nap and I managed to stealthily pass by it and cross the line too.

CC:     Imagine that you were just crossing him and he would have woken up, sensing your body odour?

TT:     I knew this could happen.  Which is why I took a detour and took a longer route just to avoid the situation.  You see, I know all the behavioural traits of the Hare species. I know they have a powerful nose and they are light sleepers.  The route I took was longer but since it was marshy land, I had to make less of an effort than I would have to on hard surface.  I contemplated between the two but since I could use my abilities to my advantage, I preferred the longer but the marshy ground.

CC:     In the modern management version of the story, the Hare challenges you once again and you accept the bet knowing fully well that this time around, he would be aware of his own mistakes and what happened earlier may not get repeated this time around?

TT:     Very True.  But for me it was important to maintain that sporting spirit.  I could not just win a game and keep on basking in the glory forever.  I might have been construed as a “stroke of luck” or that I won because of his weakness.  I wanted to prove myself that I could win on my own merits.

CC:     You lost the second race by a good margin and yet you challenged the Hare to a third race.  What were you thinking?

TT:     I did some smart thinking and some introspection.  The Hare was 2-1 up on me.  When I set up the new route, he did not realise that there would be a water body mid-route. I tricked him into the race and he lost because swimming has never been his forte.  He did not take consider the fact that I may be slow on earth but I am can swim with ease.  Here, I was at an advantage.  I had two skills and gifted with these abilities.  The hare never tried to learn to swim.  He was confident of his only skill, i.e. to run fast.  Had he learnt to swim, he could have beaten me to it too. Perhaps not.

CC:     In the fourth race, you end up striking a deal with the Hare and complement each other in situations that are not conducive for each one of you.

TT:     The Hare is a smart guy.  He knew that I am an amphibian and am equally at ease on both land and water.  In deep or shallow waters, I am at my best because my weight does not matter anymore there.  I can swim on the surface or dive deep into the water too.  Soon realising that the forest has all types of terrains, and the Hare would not be able to cross rivulets, shallow or deep rivers, he struck a deal with me.

         

          To me, the Hare had learnt a meaningful lesson that unless we work in a team, we cannot expect to win a race, else he would have not agreed to it.  We all have different skill sets.  While we may have attained domain expertise in one subject or profession, we cannot be equally good at other skills.  Which is why, when people with unique skills like a Marketing Person, the Operations person, an Information Technology Guy, the Financial Expert Person, the Legal Expert, the Production Expert, the Research and Development expert, the procurement expert, the designing expert come together, they make a formidable team and produce excellent results.

          None of them can expect to operate in a silo.  Companies that have been successful have the team concept in their DNA and that brings out the best in each one of them, making them work together.  It is therefore, equally important that your hiring decision is very prudent, selecting people that will get absorbed in your corporate culture.  Any individual who varies or tries to deviate from the organisational culture will end up messing the whole environment, causing permanent damage.

CC:     In the modern age, would you both have succeeded if someone else placed a bet against both of you?

TT:     You see, it’s quite simple!  We are not here to compete with anyone, even if they want to.  That does not mean that we are incompetent or we are shying away from competition and not ready to do anything to survive.  We are here to do our own thing which is to do some meaningful work while we are at it.  There are a lot of things do to other than running a race or proving others wrong all the time.  Yes, where the conditions are ideal, the race is between peers - people with same skill sets and competition is even, there is no harm in trying to bring out our best.  But competition amongst apples and oranges is not desirable.

CC:     As a creature, you carry a heavy shell over you all the while.  Do you feel that you should let go of the shell and lighten your body, enabling you to move faster?

TT:     If the shell was taken away from me, I would not survive even for a minute.  It is my core competency.  It shields me from enemies. You know how much young children love me. Can you imagine, any other animal that can carry my shell.  If I let go of this shell, what would happen to it?  Who will carry it? The shell is a blessing and I am thankful to God for it. And tell me, why the heck do I need to move faster? I’m happy the way I am.

         Whatever we have, must be converted into assets. Often, we do not see the positive aspects but dwell upon what we see as negative or the flip side but which is not.  Only when the realisation dawns upon you that you have a mine full of assets, then begins your journey towards success.  Sometimes, people do not realise it ever during their life time.  It is like the deer sensing the musk but never finding it.    That to me, is non-realisation of one’s own assets, potential and talent.  And that is failure.

          

          Not using your assets means (a) that you have not trusted your creator; (b) you have not had a good relationship with yourself.  You may have travelled around the world, seen the best places in the world but have not travelled deep into your own self.  You haven’t attempted to find out the resources that you were born with.  Each person must learn to recognise his gifts from an early age.  For this, parents must have perfected this craft themselves and then must train and teach their children to recognise them.  I believe that only a handful of people in this world have recognised their abilities, worked upon them, converted them into achievements and achieved success in life.  There is so much work to be done.

CC:    You have shared a great piece of wisdom with our readers.  We thank you very much and look forward to keep on learning from you.

TT:    I appreciate your kind words but that is no big deal.  I have learnt a few lessons in life which I have shared with you.

This is a purported dialogue between the Tortoise and CALIBRE CREATORS.  This is a work of fiction and CALIBRE CREATORS does not claim to understand the language spoken by the animal species.

This article was published in the  Calibre Creators LEARNING LETTER issue of July 2015, Vol. 3, Issue No.11.  

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