The current economic crisis and the subsequent layoffs remind me of an old anecdote:
Once in a village ( XYZ) there was famine. It was predicted to last an year. No food whatsoever. The villagers started dying. They went to the Zamindar ( Head of the village) and asked him for food so that they may live on and when the famine is over, they will start harvesting again and pay back. They would also be indebted to him forever for his help. He refused.
The Zamindar knew he had enough stock for his family for 11 months. He had a plan: He asked his family to go without food for first one month so that rest 11 months they can feast and continue the same lifestyle...one month of struggle followed by 11 months of luxury. The family accepted the plan and they started starving. In the meantime, villagers continued dying of starvation.
While this was happening in village XYZ, the exactly opposite was happening in village ABC. The zamindar there had a different approach. He shared his stock with villagers, his family and villagers ate only once/ twice a day to ensure that stock lasts 6 months or more.
After about a month, this Zamindar was visiting village XYZ. He found dead villagers, dead zamindar and his family members and one store full of 11 months of food for 8 people or 3 months of food for around 50 people as per his approach.
Just can't help remembering this story when I read the news papers daily about people getting laid off and companies selling themselves in panic.....
1 comment:
That brings a lot of hope, optimism and trust for people like me just getting out a B-School under such difficult time when even Wall Street is under great turmoil which has brought everybody under thinking hat.
Thanks for keeping the story alive and i second words of a Leader who believes in CHANGE
Together we stand and "Yes We Can".
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