“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci (Adopted by Steve Jobs)
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A Man hired an Ass to carry his load in the heat of summer, with the Owner following behind to drive the beast.
By and by, in the heat of the day, they had to stop to rest.
The Man wished to lie down in the shadow of the Ass, but the Owner refused, claiming that the Man hired the Ass only, and not his shadow.
Words turned to blows, and while the men were fighting, the Ass escaped. The Man had to carry the burden of his cargo, and the Owner lost his Ass.
Moral of the Story: In creating arguments over fine points, we lose the benefit of our bargain. Give a little to get a lot.
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Introduction – The Essential Aesop – Epilogue
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Why We Loved It: In this wonderful fable, Aesop teaches Business 101: Add value to the deal. Sacrifice for the customer we love, within reason.
On the one hand, the objective of business is profit, but, on the other hand, that objective is ultimately self-defeated with an unhappy customer. There is a balance. The magic of business is in repeat business, and happy customers tend to be repeat customers.
In Aesop’s fable, the Owner could have handled it a lot of ways. The Owner might have charged more for the base price and mentioned that the shadow is included. The Owner might have stated a value for the shadow and then conceded the value to get a happy customer. The Owner might have done many things to achieve a happy customer. But, here, the Owner simply did it all wrong, and paid for it. The Owner neither received the price, nor the happy customer.
Sacrifice is a gift, and everyone loves to receive a gift. Sometimes a gift comes without a reward, and then it is perfect. But, short of perfection, sometimes a gift is with a reward, in which case, it can still be wise. Similar to the lesson in The Boy and the Filberts, [1, 2], it’s not about what we lose in the process, but what we get to keep in the process.
Foolish Owner, he did not get the price, he brought misery to himself and his customer, and he lost his Ass in the process.
“When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done only what we were obliged to do.’” ~ Jesus, ONE®: The Unified Gospel of Jesus 1734 [L17:7] (“Exceed Expectation, Unprofitable Servant”)
“The shortest distance to success is the extra mile.” ~ Anthony Zegarelli
[1] Greed is Good? – The Business of Aesop™ No. 9 – The Boy and the Filberts [#GRZ_33]
© 2013 Arnold Zegarelli and Gregg Zegarelli, Esq. Gregg can be contacted through LinkedIn. Arnold Zegarelli can be contacted through Facebook.
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