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Aesop’s Fable #1: The Hare and Tortoise One day there was a hare who was bragging about his agility and was laughing at the tortoise for being so slow. To the hare’s surprise, the tortoise challenged him to a race. The hare consented haughtily, looking on the proposal as a complete joke.
“Who shall judge our contest?” said the Hare. “Let’s have the fox be our judge, since he is smart, honest, and neutral to our cause,” said the Tortoise. And like that, a contest was laid out and it began…The race started and the hare, of course, darted off to a massive lead.
Having reached about the halfway point a way down the path, and the day being sunny and hot, the hare decided to stop and play around awhile. He found a comfortable little shady spot and decided to take a quick nap, determining that even if the tortoise were to catch up, he could easily finish what he started and overtake the tortoise again with ease.
Meanwhile, the tortoise pressed on, relentlessly and unwaveringly in pursuit of the goal…
The hare woke up, yawned, then groggily looked around. Uncertain of how much time had passed, but with no sign of the tortoise, he took off, once again in pursuit of the finish-line. When he reached the end, he found that the tortoise was already there, crowned as the winner.
Cliché Moral: Slow and steady wins the race.
Modernized Tortoise & The Hare:
Once upon a time in 2024 there was a classic tale of the boys… Hare the software developer, Tortoise the entrepreneur, and Mr. Fox the lawyer. All were skilled in their own ways.
One day while they were all hanging out at the brewery, the Fox expressed he had an idea to develop an application to meet one of his needs at work. Tortoise expressed curiosity and began asking Fox some probing questions. Hare scoffed after a short back and forth between the two, arrogantly interjecting “If you want an app, I can hook you up.” Fox, being an intelligent and rational creature, asked if they would both like to “bring me a proposal by the end of the month I will compensate the winner.” Hare and Tortoise shook hands on the endeavor and the competition was underway.
That very evening, Hare, confident in his coding prowess, started piecing together an application based on some of his previous work. He believed speed and technical razzle-dazzle would win the day. He made a quick mock-up and went to work. Pleased with all the progress he made on the first day, he set the work aside so he could focus on some of this his other endeavors. He juggled a lot of jobs like this, you see. Confident in his ability to multi-task, he set this one on the back burner, certain he could get something done by the end of the month.
Tortoise, recognizing his limitations in technical skills, focused on understanding the Fox’s requirements thoroughly. He collaborated with the Fox over the course of several short sessions, making some simple mock-ups and getting feedback along the way. He worked every day to get a little bit closer to having a cohesive solution for the Fox. He watched YouTube videos every day, read countless articles and how-to guides, and scoured forums for help to get his solution patched together.
In the final week, it occurred to Hare he needed to get things done. He closed some loops, put some polish on that turd, (it’s only a demo and customers are stupid) and called it a wrap. Hare showcased his technically advanced solution, demonstrating the speed and beauty of his application. Fox was impressed with what it looked like, but was disappointed it didn’t actually do any of the things he needed. More importantly, the Fox didn’t feel he would be comfortable continuing to work with Hare on this, since he hadn't heard back from Hare about this opportunity since the first day.
Without even knowing it, Tortoise had won already simply delivering something iteratively and never taking his eye off the prize. The solution he presented, while crude, was functional and did exactly what the Fox needed it to do; nothing more, nothing less. This was the start of a long and fruitful working arrangement.
Modern Take on Moral: Being talented will take you far, but staying focused and remaining diligent in pursuit of reaching your goals will help you finish what you start.
Coaching Moments:
Spend five minutes in reflection to answer to yourself the following questions:
Where have you been a hare lately?
What things have you been relying on your talents for lately, but you haven’t found yourself pushing yourself towards a rewarding pursuit?
What things are distracting you from finishing your most important pursuits?
If they’re removable: How will that look?
If they’re not: What is your actual top priority?
Call to Action:
Sound off in the comments below. What are some of the races you're trying to win in 2024?
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