A great friend of mine has the right idea and can currently be found, at this present moment, at one with nature in the wilds of . . . well, that would be telling. Anyway, it was due to their exploits, that the inspiration for this Factoid hit me. I have been very fortunate to be involved with Factoidz as it has given me an outlet for all that literary energy and information that needed to be vented. Thanks to everyone who has answered my questions, sent me feedback, contributed to campaigns and provided hours and hours of entertainment in the Business Forum. Again I digress . . . where was I? Oh, yes. So my best friend’s working/walking holiday has been the genius behind this article. Being someone with an (over) active imagination, someone who loves (certain aspects of) nature, a businessperson and a writer to boot, I am surprised it has taken me this long to write, but God moves in mysterious ways. For all you nature purists out there, I apologise for any inaccuracies or mistakes made and hope you can see past them to what I am saying which is something very serious . . .
Hard work nearly always pays off - for this example, I am going to use the humble ant. Actually, when you think about it, there is nothing humble about them. They carry up to 40 times their body weight, stockpile food so that when it gets cold, they have a store of food to rely on . . . for the whole colony. No traipsing out to Walmart in 4-inch snow, freezing wind and pouring rain. Although in our everyday lives, this would produce a logistical and planning nightmare, the principle still works. Working hard is good for you, there is nothing better than feeling you have achieved something because of your efforts. For the ants, it is having food to last them months, having impressive ant hills for homes and having the ability to be so small yet teach us human beings important life lessons.
Check this video…
and this one will blow your mind…
Big things start with just a little seed and a lot of faith - for this, I give you the mustard seed. I mean, when the Bible talks about having faith as small as a mustard seed, in the beginning I took it with a pinch of salt (I am sure there is a joke in there somewhere, but I will leave it to you guys to work it out). But having found out just how small it is has helped me put things into perspective. At 1/8th of an inch, it is not the smallest but it is one of the smallest. But it is one of the fastest growing and the biggest when it is mature. They say that a picture speaks a thousand words–well, in this area I have three.
The seed
The tree
The plant
The tree
So like as the proverbs say, every journey starts with a small step and do not despise the days of small beginnings - listen and learn. Microsoft, Apple, Facebook did not spring up, fully-fledged multi-million dollar corporations; they started as ideas in someone’s head, in someone’s kitchen/bathroom/living room and with hard work, patience and time, they have grown into more than probably what their founders hoped for. Maybe, your big dream is to get published, or find that dream job, start a family etc.; they all start with a seed (in the case of the latter, quite literally!) so think of that when you next lather your hot dog with the mustard.
Communication is everything . . . well, almost - How do the ants boss each other around, when they can’t communicate? Amazing! Nature has ingenious ways of exchanging all types of communications among and even between the species, and this has developed them. Communicating correctly could mean the difference between playful wrestling and deadly combat. There is no particular animal I am using as an example. Not being able to see one another is no excuse (for humans) to not communicate and that is something that we can learn. I moved out of my parents’ house nearly three months ago and yet, it seems like I have not been away. My mum calls me at least 2 times a day and texts me constantly. The thought that she is only a phone-call, text or email away is comforting. As a businessperson, effective communication is crucial to running a successful enterprise; as parents, couples, families, communities, it is something that we must never forget to develop and cherish. From a hug to card; from a flyer to a demonstration, communicating can help destroy wrong notions and help and establish right ideas and foundations.
You do not necessarily need technology to survive - I don’t know about you, but leave me without my laptop or my mobile phone for more than a couple of days and I am almost a quivering wreck with almost zero survival instinct and the backbone of an amoeba - it’s ridiculous! How did this happen? So every now and then, I am teaching myself to switch off and tune out because apart from being addictive, it is making me ill. Take a look at the humble bee, all it needs is a flower and it’s away…going from flower to flower collecting pollen to make the honey which I enjoy with my toast . . . amongst other things.
That not float your boat? Dolphins - swimming, hunting, squeaking and occasionally allowing us humans into their marine world - simple yet so much fun. Dogs: Give them a bone, throw them a frisbee/stick/ball whatever and they are happy, shower them with love and they are yours pretty much forever. In terms of business, technology is a huge help but sometimes, nothing beats face-to-face contact, skin-to-skin handshake and a smile; THESE technology cannot replace…yet.
Which brings me to my final point - Man was not meant to be alone. Even solitary animals come together sometimes even if it is just to ‘get it on’ (yeah you know what I mean). Reaching out can be scary but ultimately fulfilling and as I go, I leave you with this saying "Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game."
I hope that this has helped or at least entertained you. It’s been great for me. Let me see what my best friend thinks, though.
Take care and God Bless readers…
Ngozi Nwabineli - October 2009
