Information overload hinders productivity and diminishes rewards. This may be true of the state of the minds as described of a people described Thursday, February 10, 2022 , the rice value chain stakeholders in the south west converged on Ibadan. In attendance were the representatives of the national body from Abuja and other regions of the country.
In the course of discussion, one of the national officers of the group frankly pointed out an issue. According to him, the south west has been lagging behind on all government interventions from the centre (especially agric intervention). ‘Do you know why’, the Abuja man asked. He went further to answer his question: ‘You people are highly educated; therefore any information passed unto you, instead of responding on time, you will first digest it one hundred per cent and start thinking ‘o, this one is going to be like this; o, that one is going to end like that’. And why you are doing that, other regions are enjoying the interventions and are going ahead of you. Yes, let me tell you: people from northeast, northwest and north central, they follow like zombies. When they say ‘do’, they do (without asking many questions) and they keep on benefitting (from what is coming from the centre)’. Come to think of it, how true or otherwise is this man’s assertion? South westerners have their ways of living. Among others, they believe so much in individualism, and are so engrossed in self-adulation. They query intentions a lot and are rationale thinkers. As good as these attributes may seem, the downside of them are so obvious. That’s why they have been missing out in the sharing of the commonwealth even when it is so glaring that they form part of the stronger oxen that are threading the corns.
However, life doesn’t reward intentions. If you can’t play by the rule (or process) no matter how poorly articulated it appears, you will not partake of the reward of the process. The fact remains that if you want to go fast, you go alone but if you want to go very far you have to go with people. This age-long credence has been proving to be correct. There is power in numbers. But in a situation or a gathering where the significant lot in the whole are sceptics, the whole will always miss opportunities. So, is there a problem in knowledge? It depends. Right knowledge and its application leads to illumination, productivity and good rewards. However, where knowledge leads to too much analysis, the probability is very high that paralysis of the mind will set in. At this level, over-analysing an opportunity will bring about numbness of the mind, weariness and total loss. This over-thinking is what optimists don’t have, or seem not to have, and yet they are achieving better results, over time, compared to the productivity of expert-analysts (measured over same period of time).
I have seen where people that are invited to benefit from an economic and financial interventions will be demanding that announced intervention programmes be redesigned to suit their preferred way (their mindset). After a lot of grumblings and naggings, they will end up losing the opportunities.
Yet these same people will be the first to complain about being denied from benefitting from what belongs to them.
One thing is certain: you need numbers to enjoy certain business benefits. If you love going solo in business, there are certain doors you can never unlock. If you are not willing to give what it takes or you are not ready to follow laid-down principles and process, you won’t get what you are promised.
Once you are unable to get such opportunity doors to open unto you, then you cannot enjoy the blessings, rewards and benefits such doors offer. Now, rather than trying to query the veracity of an intervention or group initiative, it is more rewarding that you comply first, come in and get a foothold, and enjoy your share of the promised-rewards; thereafter you can be actively involved to effect changes that may be necessary to make better such programmes.
As I once mentioned on this page, there will come a time when doing good business will not be about you own individual capacity but about who you know and the qualities, capacities and capabilities these people you know or associate with can wield on your behalf to facilitate values for your economic benefits.
Today’s business operators need to achieve more with lesser efforts. The earlier you embrace this and take advantage of it, the better for you and the scarce resources at your disposal. No matter how experienced and knowledgeable you are, you will do better when you are in situations where you already have a foot in the door to take a good bite of the larger pie. You must join hands with like minds and work as a team to reap great benefits from economy of scale.
Ola Emmanuel is a business planning and cooperative consultant.
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