Survive, Sustain & Supersede

All About Survival

Earth has seen repeated mass extinctions that have wiped out a substantial part of human civilization and hugely eclipsed the existence of the ones left alive. How is it that a considerable lot of humans and creatures survive? Is it a random likelihood, or luck? The cause that is responsible for such tragic adversities to occur is often overlooked. Perhaps, because it is too risky to not happen, or too costly to not take care of in the first place or beliefs like – Nature will adapt, What has to happen, will happen.

Paleontologists say, about 66 million years ago, the earth was hit by a large celestial object that released toxic, climate-changing gases marking the cause of dinosaur extinction.

Another such instance, about 70,000 years ago, in Toba, Indonesia there occurred a volcanic supereruption literally put the human species to ashes to an extent of extinction. The statistics say that only around 500 reproducing females survived in the world. But this was thousands of years ago and one would think that today we have come a long long way ahead of the ancient times and are well-equipped and have enough social morale to fight against or prevent a catastrophe that could kill us. Do you think it is really about time?

Imagine, people who would feel disturbed after looking at a dog get hit by a car, for them to think that an entire human race may end one day is another trauma, with a magnitude of fear so big that they snap into an alternate way of thinking, completely avoiding its possibility. The same thing happened to Nokia – one of the best-selling brands that faced defeat because it let fear drive its decisions. According to the experts, Nokia knew that its OS is not as good as Apple, and middle management didn’t convey this to the top management fearing they would lose their job. They overlooked the possibility of failure in aid to protect their careers, had fear-led decisions, and failed to innovate, ergo failed to survive.?

Survival of the Fittest?

Have you ever seen a wildlife jungle chase, (of course on Nat Geo)? There is tense music in the backdrop, and the eyes of the lion are fixed on the hoard of distant deers, The deers are strategizing, making slow movements at first. The lion silently walking, contemplating, then it begins, with him sprinting in their direction, unabashedly. They are trying to cover more ground with each stride and it is getting real. Some of them flaunt their athletism hinting the lion that they are fit and maybe he should pick on some weaker ones. While a few manage to survive their way out, the lion now focuses on the lone, young one right ahead of him. The deer manages to dodge several times, as it is not always about sprinting the fastest. The lion still doesn’t give up because he knows the deer’s slim legs would make him trip only too easily. The deer’s body touches the ground, the lion pauses, and the deer runs again. The deer loses the battle eventually, but the chase is a never-ending one! In this chase, many deers outmaneuvered the lion while he was only able to hunt the young, weakest one. The deers ran for their life, the lion for food signifying the importance of purpose over need.

Your purpose fuels your vision to transform and be ready for the wave you see coming toward you. We were all like that hoard of deers when Covid 19 wave hit us. Yelp data, in its Economic Impact report, shows that 60% of business shut down due to coronavirus pandemic are now permanent focusing on the point that only the fittest have survived. Transformation is the Key There is no magic method to survive pandemic like Covid 19 or any other for that matter. Indeed, there is something that can be done to adapt better and increase your chances. Transformation.?

Let’s understand this with An Inspiring Story of An Eagle

The Eagle has the longest life span and can live up to 70 years. But, to achieve this it has to go through a painful process (lasting for 5 months) which requires the eagle to fly to the top of a mountain and sit on its nest. There the eagle knocks its bent beak against a rock until it falls out. Then it waits for its beak to grow back. Post which, it plucks it talons out. Once the talons grow back it repeats the same with its heavy thick feathers because it makes it difficult for him to fly.

When the feathers grow back, it takes a brand new flight of rebirth to live for another 30 years. Just like the eagle, it is necessary for everyone to go through the process of change – it may be challenging or painful for us at first in a way that initially it might increase the cost or break the flow of things but only to resume again with fresh energy.

Many have surrendered themselves to this process of change with a free mindset and hope of success. Now imagine, a man who is returning from work, and is tired because of his day’s tasks. He stops by a tea vendor and calls for a masala chai. He is served a hot steamy cup of tea which brings a slight smile to his face and soothes his soul. After he finishes, he reaches into his shirt pocket to pay for tea and finds a 500 Rs note. He secretly wishes for the tea vendor to have change else he would have to go to an ATM. The tea vendor refuses to take the money and points him in the direction of a Paytm scanner. He is surprised and relieved. He scans and pays for the tea. What a hassle-free moment, right?

Paytm was such an innovation that disrupted the way payments were made. People don’t always carry much cash and the fact that a small tea vendor or grocery seller by the roadside is accepting payments through Paytm drove a lot of customers to their shops because they understood what customers needed.?

Speaking of transformation, do you know how a popular gym Cult moved its workouts online? Gyms and fitness companies had to think of a creative way to reach people when they couldn’t go to gym physically. Cult released an at-home workout session at Cult. Fit. The change in approach helped the gym to stay connected to customers.

From a small tea vendor to a big fitness brand like Cult, every one of them reconsidered their place in the pandemic, took a moment to redefine processes, and underwent a transformation to be able to take a flight of rebirth for survival in the times ahead.?

To be continued ............Stay Tuned !