Imitation to overcome limitation or for success…Orchid Mantis corporate leaders

Most of the business enterprises do engage in mimicry/imitation. They always follow the style of other organizations or people who are already very successful.

The personal care industries, for example, like to mimic others. Even in the appearance or the colour or in the packaging or in using the fragrance in the products, they imitate the successful brands of other companies.

The world renowned and scientifically proven brand of the skin lightening cream – Fair & Lovely of Unilever, is being imitated by some companies by making their products look similar to Fair & Lovely to the customers. The question is not about whether the imitation is bad or good.

Nature has a strong message and example to all the corporate and its people who are busily engaged in different form of ‘mimicry’ / ‘imitation’. Nature always wants its products to be successful. Hence it employs only the same law and yardstick both to the prey and predator.

The message of nature to the corporate and its people is that, mimic and imitate, but remember to be more successful than whom or what you imitate or mimic. It is not just an advice; a necessary wisdom with best example only comes from nature.

Scientists have recently discovered some amazing things about the Malaysian orchid mantis zoologically called as Hymenopus coronatus. This mantis imitates like an orchid flower and sits on the orchid plants for its prey. The orchid plants lure and attract the pollinators through the scent and the vibrant colouration of the flower petals. The orchid mantis in true sense appears and looks similar to an orchid flower with reference to its appearance and colour.

Scientific studies have proved that the orchid mantis attracts and lure the pollinating insects more effectively than the real orchid flowers. Once the pollinators come close to the mantis thinking it to be an orchid flower, the mantis has its easy meal.

The message is that just by imitating some success model, success cannot be achieved. When one imitates the other, one has to supersede the ‘example’ only then the success is possible. Just by introducing a product with some similarity of the popular brand, no personal care industry can find success. The product must have merit.

This is same for people also. They tend to imitate some very successful business leaders. By imitating such people, they cannot become different unless and until they infuse ‘content, quality, merit and meaning. But unfortunately, they never understand the same. They believe that by painting stripes onto a cat, they can fool the world by presenting a cat as tiger.

When you have decided to imitate or mimic, mimic or imitate like an orchid mantis. Instead of seeing the obvious imitation or mimicry in you, let the world see you as ‘natural and original’ and let that uniqueness carve your success. Create uniqueness while you imitate or mimic someone and be more authentic and successful than whom you mimic or imitate.

Learn the purpose of your imitation and never get lost in the process is the management message, the orchid mantis conveys to the corporate. It knows the fact that many pollinators come to the orchid flower. Orchid flower attracts the pollinators only through its scent, vibrant colour and appearance. The mantis also appears to have evolved with the above trick. With the above trick, interestingly the mantis has become more successful than the orchid plants. It has only learned the essence of imitation and has never lost its purpose and hence become more successful than the orchid plants.

Dr S Ranganathan, ClinRise Derma Pvt., Ltd., Chennai