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Once there were two company presidents who competed in the same industry. These two presidents decided to go on a camping trip to discuss a possible merger. They hiked deep in the woods. Suddenly, they came upon a grizzly bear that rose up on its hind legs and snarled. Instantly, the first president took off his snap sack and got out a pair of jogging shoes. The second president said, “Hey, you can’t outrun that bear.” The first president responded, “Maybe I can’t outrun that bear, but I surely can outrun you!” This story captures the notion of strategy and the ability to inculcate it in our personal lives.

 

 

 

When I first read this story, it really made me laugh but when I continued thinking about it, I realized the importance of integrating capitalism approach to life and business. The first president survival was based on the death of the second president. I am sure most of you will say in your heart; “that’s a cruel way of reasoning” but let’s look at this scenario again; the first president had no gun or weapon and the two of them combined could not take on the bear. The bear is so powerful that it can kill about 4 human beings at the same time; the two presidents were aware of the potential danger but it was the first president that instinctively and intuitively knew what to do.

 

 

 

I have heard this sentence many times that “life is not fair”. This may be true on an emotional level especially when you have to read the story above where a man sacrificed his own brother for his own survival but this is a false premise to life. The first president did not just get lucky for having such thoughts; he has developed this way of thinking over time. He may not have ever thought of facing bear and delaying the bear with another human being’s life but he definitely must have thought of the best way to survive impossible situation. The fact that he collaborated on the merger possibility was simply out of survival.

 

 

 

Survival is thus the first primal instinct of man; it is first food, shelter, and then clothing. In a world filled with competition and unpredictability, survival is the only language that suffices. If Mrs. A opens a shop in an estate selling bread at 100 bucks and Mrs. B opens another shop 1 year besides Mrs. A, selling the same bread at 80 bucks in order gain entrance into the market as customers are familiar with Mrs. A. If the landing cost of the bread is 75 bucks, Mrs. B has threatened the survival of Mrs. A by forcing her to bring down her price to 80 bucks. If Mrs. C joins the two of them 3 years later and reduces the price to 60 bucks because she owns her own bakery and sells the same bread knowing she makes profit from selling at 60 bucks.

 

 

I want you to look at the above scenario very carefully and think about your position in the work place or anywhere you feel you are deriving your economic power. Do you really think you years of experience matters? It’s just a matter of time for Mrs. A and Mrs. B to realize that their cheese is gone; the means of taking care of their home, their children was just taken from under their nose by another human being. This scenario is not different from the bear scenario; there is absolutely no difference; Mrs. C just sucks the life out of Mrs. A and Mrs. B.

 

 

Is the first president and Mrs. C such a bad person? Let’s see what the bible says about this. In Mathew 25, an allegory of the Kingdom of Heaven was emphasized with the stories of the 10 virgins waiting for their bridegroom. 5 of them were regarded as wise while the other 5 were regarded as foolish. The five foolish virgins were foolish because they did not anticipate a delay in the coming of the bridegroom. They all had oil in their lamps but they did not all anticipate a delay so the foolish virgins missed out on the wedding. The part that broke the veil in my eyes was when the 5 foolish virgins ask the 5 wise virgins for oil, they refused to give them. The reason for their capitalist thinking was simple; the resources would not be enough.

 

 

When people guard their resources because it would not be enough to take them to their destination, they are regarded as wise. This is the way the Kingdom of Heaven works. Mrs. C simply was guarding her resources; if Mrs. C was selling at the same amount that Mrs. A and B was selling, all her bread in the bakery will decay and she would make a huge loss because all the customers in the estate would have been loyal to either Mrs. A and B (remember she came in three years later). She could not sell to Mrs. A and B because the two of them buy from another bakery. The competition at the wholesale level was so hot that she had to go retail in order to recoup her capital.

 

 

I am sure you will agree with me that Mrs. C is not a bad person because she is just guarding her resources though at the expense of Mrs. A and B just like the wise virgins guarded their resources. Also note that Mrs. C has to give an account to her maker; she was given a specific amount of resources and she has to double it just like the parable of the talent in the same Mathew 25; the guy that was given 5 talents brought back 10 talents and the Master praised him and called him faithful servant. It did not matter that they had different talents given to the three of them; what matters is that they effectively doubled their talents. If the guy with the 5 talent said in his mind, let me consider the guy with two talent and not compete with him to double my talent; what do you think the master will say to the guy with the 5 talents if he returns with 5 talents out consideration for the guy with the two?

 

 

In the coming months, Mrs. A and Mrs. B realized that their cheese was gone so Mrs. A sold off her shop to Mrs. D who also has a bakery and competed with Mrs. C by reducing price to 55 bucks. Mrs. C and Mrs. D were in a price war that they no longer make significant profit in the business. Mrs. E did not have as much resources as Mrs. A, B, C and D but will introduce to us what God expects from us. Mrs. E met with Mrs. B to let her shop to her monthly. She made her bread from her kitchen oven and sold at the same price that Mrs. C and D were selling and was making substantial profit. Mrs. E’s bread was bromine free and tastier than Mrs. C and Mrs. D so sold faster and was always in demand.

 

 

The demand for Mrs. E’s price was so much that she increased the price to 200 bucks to reduce demand. Notwithstanding the price, Mrs. E’s bread was always out of stock. She did not really need Mrs. B’s shop again because people started queuing up in her house to buy her bread for 200 bucks. Hotels, companies and restaurants started ordering for her bread because her reputation grew and grew. Some smart investors saw the opportunity and built her a bakery factory and she kept her secret ingredients to herself. Mrs. E bread is no longer an estate thing but a national brand.

 

 

Mrs. E brand became so popular that people started collecting franchise from all over the world. There is nowhere in the world that you will not get Mrs. E’s bread. Mrs. E did not have enough resources when she started, she did not buy from a bakery to resell, and she started organically from her kitchen oven and thus was able to discover her secret ingredient. It was not easy for Mrs. E when she started because she must have had sleepless night and burnt fingers in order to manually make the bread demanded for. Mrs. E’s cheese can never go.

 

 

Just like the book; “who moved my cheese?” The rat that left the comfort of her location to seek for a new cheese was the hero we all thrive be like but not many of us can take the journey that the rat took. If we stick to our comfort zone, we would be like the bread that can easily be priced out of the market. When everybody is engaged in doing the same thing like staying in paid employment, you will simply be a commodity that is affected by price not brand. If you choose to be a brand, you must discover yourself and develop the talent God has given you. Remember the days of Noah, people did things the same way they have been doing it; when the storm comes and the storm will surely come like Mrs. B came, like Mrs. C came and Mrs. D came, it is only Mrs. E that will stand because of the ark she has built which accommodate Mrs. F to Mrs. Z.