How Does a Virtuous Seed Grow into A Virtuous Culture? A Short Management Tale.

What is “Company Culture”?

A man wanted to understand what “company culture” was, so he asked God.

God led him to a door. He opened it, and saw a large farm. Then, he saw two farmers, one with a chicken in his hand, and the other with a basket of eggs.

As he walked closer to them, he heard their conversation.

Farmer #1: These eggs are mine! Your chicken has crossed into my farm and laid eggs, so these eggs should belong to me.

Farmer #2: No! These eggs are from my chicken, so they should belong to me!

They kept arguing and no one moved an inch.

Then, God led him to another door.

The Influence of a Good Seed

He opened it and saw that everything was exactly the same — the same surroundings, the same two farmers with the eggs and chicken. But this time, something was different- the conversation the farmers were having sounded different. He leaned closer and listened.

Farmer #1: Here, these eggs are yours! Your chicken has crossed into my farm to lay eggs, so these eggs should belong to you.

Farmer #2: Oh no, I’m so sorry that my chicken has crossed into your farm. Please, keep these eggs.

The man was curious. He stepped forward and asked Farmer #1, “these eggs were laid on your farm, you could have kept them, why did you return them?”

Farmer #1 startled, as if he couldn’t understand why anyone would ask a question like that. He straightened his back and said righteously, “that’s what our king would do. That’s what everyone on this land would do. It has always been this way.”

God turned to that knowledge-seeking man and said, “that, my son, is company culture. Given the same physical conditions, yet the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual assets produced by the people are different.”

Story Insight

Company culture is like wind, it is unseen, but it is a living force that can move things in the backdrop.

The leader lives in the minds and hearts of his people. Therefore, the attitudes, values, and practices adopted by the leader, consciously or unconsciously, will also grow, like seeds, in the minds and hearts of his people, affecting their visions, conversations, behaviors, and subsequently, their achievements.

Food for Thought

What are some of the attitudes, values, and practices you would be excited to see growing among the people whom you are leading or influencing? What are the ‘seeds’ that you can start practicing to see that vision come to pass?

Disclaimer: The original version of this story was published on another platform. Link to original version: https://medium.com/@sarahteoh337/management-tales-the-two-farmers-49cde149defd