The tortoise and the hare - a new interpretation for companies

   THE TORTOISE AND THE HARE    (The WHOLE Story)
   By Dr Jill Ammon-Wexler

   ** The Original Version of the Folktale
   Once upon a time a tortoise and a hare had
   an argument about who was faster. They
   decided to settle their argument by having
   a race. So they agreed on the route, and
   started off.
   The hare jumped from the starting line and
   roared toward the agreed-upon ending point.
   But it was a hot day, so he stopped for a
   drink at a stream. Confident he was far, far
   ahead of the tortoise … the hare laid down
   beneath a shady bush to cool off before
   continuing the race. He promptly fell asleep.
   The slow tortoise soon reached the hare, and
   smiled to see him asleep under the bush. He
   plodded on quietly, and finished the race while
   the hare was still napping.
   The hare woke up, and immediately realized
   he'd lost the race.
   The OLD moral: "Slow and steady will always
   win the race."

  ** Chapter Two
   But that was NOT the end of the story!
   The hare was gravely disappointed at having
   lost the race. He did some soul-searching. He
   concluded he'd lost because of misjudging
   the situation.
   So he challenged the tortoise to another race.
  The tortoise agreed.
   This time, the hare ran at full speed to the
   finish line. He was the uncontested winner.
   The hare's insight: "It's OK to be slow and
   steady -- but it's better to be fast and committed."

   ** Chapter Three
   This time tortoise did some soul searching. He
   realized he would have to be creative to beat
   the hare.
   He brainstormed for a while, then came up
   with a promising strategy. He challenged the
   hare to a race along a different route.
   The hare gleefully agreed. They positioned
   themselves on the starting line, and started
   off on the tortoise's signal.
   Following his commitment to be fast and
   committed -- the hare burst from the starting
   line at top speed.
   But the hare came to a screeching halt at
   the bank of a deep river. He was no swimmer –
   and the finish line was on the other bank!
   The tortoise came along and found the hare
   pacing along the river bank, sweat pouring
   from between his drooping ears. He crawled
   past the hare and eased his body into the water.
   The hare fumed as he watched the tortoise
   swim to the opposite bank, and crawl calmly
   over the finish line.
   The tortoise's insight: Identify your strongest
    personal assets, then change the playing
   field to favor your strengths.

   ** Chapter Four
   But that was still not the end of the story.
   By now the tortoise and the hare had
   developed mutual respect, and established a
   friendship. They laughed together over
   the three races, and decided they could
   improve their personal best by combining
   forces.
   So they decided to repeat the last race -- but
   this time to run it as a team.
   Again the hare sprinted from the starting line –
   but this time carrying the tortoise. Once they
   reached the river, the tortoise swam across
   with the hare on his back.
   Once they reached the other bank, the hare
   again carried the tortoise to the finish line
   Each set amazing new personal bests through
   their cooperative team work.
   Their shared insight: "It's good to be brilliant
   and have strong personal qualities and abilities.
   But if you run as a team, you'll often do better
   yet.

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