The “Dodo” syndrome..

The dodo was a flightless bird that lived in the island of Mauritius. The species lost the ability to fly because on Mauritius food was abundant and mammalian predators were absent. The dodo was first mentioned by Dutch sailors in 1598. By 1681, all dodos had been killed by hungry sailors or their domesticated animals. Since it had lost its capability to fly, it could not escape when it was attacked.

Now Sample this:

A young kid goes to a public phone booth and dials a number. When the recipient of the call (A shop owner) answers the phone, the conversation goes something like:

Boy: Hi, I have heard that you need a helper at your shop. I would like to offer my services.

Shop Keeper: Sorry, that’s wrong information. I already have a helper.

Boy: Sir, if you don’t mind me asking, how much are you paying him and how many hours does he work?

Shop Keeper: I pay him INR 200 per day and he works 8 hours on my shop. He gets one day weekly off.

Boy: Sir, I will work for INR 150 per day. Will work 10 hours at the shop and also help you in your household work. I don’t need a weekly off.

Shop Keeper:  Thanks for the offer, young man but I am very happy with my current helper and won’t want to replace him.

The phone booth owner was hearing this. He says to the boy “If you can do all that for INR 150 per day, please join me from today.”

Boy: Thanks for the offer Sir. I am the helper the person was talking about. I was only checking how I was doing at my job.

Rock iT™ Mantra ( Worth a repeat) : It is said that a lion stops and looks around after every five steps. The poor Dodo didn’t do that. Any surprises that Dodo went extinct and a lion not only survives but rules...

Have we met and seen individuals and companies suffering from Dodo Syndrome. What happened to SGI or SUN or Kodak or currently happening to Nokia or RIM?

I have observed and worked closely with some companies who realized very fast that they ought to change gears regularly. Young, 5- 7 year old companies who built business upto a certain level on one strength but quickly anticipated the winds of change and adjusted their lines of business accordingly. They are now building complementing lines of businesses based on other strengths that they had or built. And they are growing much faster than before.

I know some brilliant individuals who got very comfortable in their cushy jobs and leveraged heavily to buy expensive cars, second house, third house, a holiday home and when suddenly they were out of job, they didn't know what hit them.

I also know some average individuals who did their Realization ( Rubaru™ ) well and became so nimble that they grew faster and higher than what their capabilities and circumstances would have otherwise allowed them. In the process, they built more capabilities and scaled even higher platforms.

The world is changing very fast. There is disruption all around. The evolution cycles have shortened and one doesn't have the luxury to sit on one’s past laurels for long.

Start with your  Rubaru™  now and create your desired outcome when you finish one round of the  Rock iT™  journey.