The following African proverb says
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A fly can disturb a lion more than the lion can disturb the fly (Kenyan proverb), and also Even the lion, king of the jungle, protects himself from flies (Ghanaian proverb).Photo: Maggy Meyer | Shutterstock
We are all made from the same clay, but not from the same mold. Mongolian proverb, which has a Mexican version: “Although we are of the same clay, it is not the same catrín as charro,” and a much more succinct one in Japan: Ten men, ten colors.
Which is your favorite proverb? Which of these inspirational proverbs have caught your attention the most? If your community has a proverb that strikes you as particularly wise, let us know and we’ll include it in the list.
If you want to go far, walk in a group
People, professionals and companies have found in coaching processes an ally. Nowadays, companies require more prepared executives, who have those “soft skills” that allow them to make better decisions, define objectives and goals, and have a positive impact on their development. Under this scenario, executive coaching has emerged as an excellent methodology for companies to move to the next level.
The coach recognizes that taking the decision to take a risk and leave the comfort zone is not easy, and his job is to help the coachee to decipher his ideas, to give them meaning and to help him determine where to go and how to get there.
Some of the indicators can be productivity, quality, organizational strength, customer service, level of customer complaints, executive retention, cost reduction, net profit, improved relationships with collaborators, superiors and employees, level of satisfaction, commitment to the organization, among others.
Who said that if you walk alone you will go faster; if you walk together, you will go farther.
The theory is clear, but putting it into practice is not trivial and it certainly does not work randomly or by chance. Open innovation has a method and involves creating the right environmental conditions to incorporate knowledge, internal or external, near or far, in any company, organization or community. To do this, it will be necessary to have the antennae well deployed towards deep space and to capture on the radar everything that can add value to processes, products or services, to management or business models.
Open innovation processes also involve a great deal of intelligence when it comes to linking the different actors involved in the process. They involve the construction of an ecosystem rich in interactions and crossovers, which are not random, and which must be guided intelligently in order to provide value. A strong and well-connected ecosystem fosters innovation, provides feedback and offers the ideal conditions for cooperation, investment and business competitiveness to flourish.
If you walk alone, you will go faster; if you walk with others, you will go farther.
On my recent trip to Kenya to teach an intensive course in contemporary philosophy at Strathmore University, I was told that this wise African proverb is written on a wall at the Johannesburg airport:
I like to do things with others, from research projects and brainy scientific papers to drinking beer like the splendid Kenyan Tusker that I was able to savor on the summit of Mount Longonot. Precisely this beer carries the brand slogan Together forever, “Together forever”. Longonot is the wonderful extinct volcano that appears in Memories of Africa and dominates a large area of the Rift Valley with its 2,560 meters of altitude. To get an idea of its grandeur, the fact that the crater ring measures more than 7 km. in perimeter may be useful.
The African philosopher Gerald J. Wanjohi gave me a book of his on Kikuyu proverbs and I read it with great interest on my return flight. I was particularly struck by one that says “What is freely chosen is best done”. It brought to my mind that in order to build a country – Kenya will celebrate its 50th anniversary in December 2013 – it is necessary to want to live together people and, in the case of this country, very different tribes. The general elections are now approaching and there is concern about the uncertainty of their outcome. After the 2007 elections, more than 1,200 people were killed and some 200,000 people were displaced because they were living in an area owned by a tribe other than their own. In fact, I have been struck by the frequent use in the press and in everyday conversations of the word “chaos” to refer to the political situation and its possible risks.