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The Principle of the Turtle Hunter
By Craig Marshall
©2004 All Rights Reserved
Ever feel like the cyber-world is passing you by, like everyone with a great idea is gonna "beat you to the punch?" Business models emphasize speed and agility, but you just don't have the resources to explode on the scene the way you want. What will happen to all those customers you might have serviced? Will there be a "slice of the pie" left when you finally get to the table?
I feel that anxiety as a "netpreneur." What's funny is that the anxiety I feel about business is no different from the anxiety I felt as a young boy pursuing a summer hobby.
Lazy, warm summer days provided the perfect opportunity for adventure. My brother and I would leave the house early in the morning to scour the misty woodland trails for our safari-prize. That's right. We were mighty turtle hunters (box turtles - we'd bring them home, keep them as "pets" for a week, then let them go - please no e-mails from PETA).
I remember a morning hustling about in preparation for the hunt. "Hurry, mom!" we said. Mom was always great about helping us with getting dressed and having breakfast, but we could never get ready fast enough. "Mom, hurry! If we don't hurry, all the turtles will be gone!"
Have you found that moms tend to have a special wisdom? I don't think mom missed a beat with her encouragement. "What about the turtles that haven't gotten there yet?" What a simple and profound observation!
My mother's words from that morning still ring in my ears, and I recall them often when I face the anxiety that comes with believing that things can't happen fast enough. Consider:
· If the world's population were scaled down to a representative village of 100 people, only 1 of those people would have a computer. In other words, there are a lot of computer owners who "haven't gotten there yet!"
- Gartner Inc. predicts that the global B2B market will be worth 8.5 trillion in 2005, up from 433 billion last year (in US dollars). So, a HUGE amount of money will be coming into the Internet economy over the next few years. The money just hasn't gotten there - yet!
- It is estimated that there will be 720 million Internet users worldwide by year-end 2005. The number of Internet users in the U.S. alone will grow to over 207 million by 2005. See, the vast majority of people who will be on the Internet haven't gotten there yet!
All right, enough stats. You get the picture! So just how should we approach 'net business since so many "turtles" haven't gotten there yet?
· Never sacrifice quality for speed. To be sure, there are lots of customers currently available for involvement in your business. Yes, act diligently to capitalize on current business opportunities. But if your visitors find a poorly constructed web site, links that go nowhere, or generally poor attention to detail, they'll probably not become customers or clients anyway.
· Stop and have breakfast! Certainly it's crucial to make a return on your investment as soon as possible. But we must not sacrifice the most important aspects of our lives to business success. Practicing the principle we've been looking at will result in a more balanced, less anxious approach to life. Your kids need the quality mentoring of their parents; your spouse needs the development of an intimate growing, relationship; your body needs proper rest and exercise. You get the idea…
· Don't race off to the hunt unprepared! Study your craft. Implement new ideas patiently and systematically. An ill-prepared turtle hunter will live to hunt another day. But the world of cyber-business is like a stalking tiger. I'll bet I don't have to tell you what happens to ill-prepared tiger hunters!
If you've been hurrying and rushing through life in hopes of capitalizing on today's business opportunities, don't forget that many more opportunities are on their way. Procrastination will certainly ruin your business. But practicing the principle of the turtle hunter will result in greater quality and fulfillment, not only in your professional life, but in your personal life as well.
CRAIG MARSHALL
is an ordained minister. He founded Health- Wealth-e and Wise with his wife, Jeanie, to help people with the transition to greater health and financial freedom. Visit HWW at:
http://www.healthewealtheandwise.com
or, say "hi" via email: Craig@healthewealtheandwise.com
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