Work on Your Core Competency: Learn how Optimizing Your Strengths Benefit You from the Hare and Tortoise Fable
Most of time, when we faces the strong competitors, our natural reaction is to withdraw because our instinct tells us there is no point wasting time and resources fighting a giant. There is no way we could win this battle! When we are at the losing end against the giant enemy, and there is no way we could compare in the 1x1 normal competition, change your strategies. Find the niches where your strengths are at max. This is what Tortoise does; he evaluates his core competencies and strengths and his enemy’s weakness. By doing this, he understand areas where he could potentially win against his enemy, something he has advantage over the enemy. At the same times, he can better plan for strategies and prepare for attack and defend! This is the basic principles in Sun Tzu’s "The Art of War". But the Hare and Tortoise fable doesn't end here! The part 3 continues… Note: If you missed the previous series of the hare and tortoise story, visit part 1 and part 2 of the story now. 
So, the tortoise did some thinking this time, and realized that there's no way he can beat the hare in a race the way it was currently formatted. He 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. First identify your core competency and then change the playing field to suit and work on your core competency.
Giving you a glimpse of some of the basic principle In Art of War – in the battlefield, the skillful commander imposes his will on the enemy by making the enemy come to him instead of being brought to the enemy. Being the first to occupy the battlefield has its advantage! To do this, he offers the enemy some advantages; and similarly, he is able to prevent enemy’s coming by inflicting damage on the enemy. When the enemy is taking his ease, harass him; when well supplied with food, attack his supply lines to starve him out; when he is at rest, force him to move. Appear at those places that he must hasten to defeat; move swiftly to those where you are not expected….. By discovering the enemy dispositions and at the same time concealing ours from him, we can concentrate our forces while he must divide him. Knowing his dispositions, we can pit our total strength against a part of his!! In short – Sun Tzu in his "Art of War" and in every art of war in the history – teaches us not to discover the enemy’s weakness and attack on it. Play out at our strengths and work on your core competency. Plan the strategies and the rule of games to our advantages so that we can control the game! |