Is it because of rat, you love cat – An important HR message

A very interesting question of why and how the cats enjoy so much of privilege, care, affection and importance among human world? We may find it very tough to answer the above question in single word or a sentence. But the truth is very astonishing and at the same time it can be very funny also. The fear of rats only would have favoured or allowed the cats to enjoy all the luxury, care and royal importance from human world.

The simple law of ‘enemy’s enemy will always enjoy great wants and privileges’ or in other word ‘enemy’s enemy will be the best friend’. Perhaps cats would have learned and exploited the above psychological dimension of during the pre-historic period.

Rats posed great threat to mankind since time immemorial in different ways and means. Man has made several attempts to control and contain them ever since the past. Man’s fight against rats was as old as human history. The best option available to man was to identify the worst enemy of rats from the nature and either domesticate them or have them as pets. Thanks to ‘rats’, ‘cats’ started enjoying a very fantastic life and care from human beings.

Interestingly, the rats ensured that all comfort cats enjoy from man are well preserved and protected continuously by establishing their dominance, menace and invincibility to man. The man unfortunately missed the purpose of having cats and invented a new psychological need and necessity out of his association with cats. He started seeking an emotional comfort or dependency from cats.

What message the corporate has to derive from the above historical event? Many employees could become part of some group in corporate may be purely because they happens (perceived or described) to be the enemy of someone. The law of enemy’s enemy is always privileged’ would have favoured them to be in the group.

Remember that if you limit your role/purpose just to deal the ego of enemy of someone’s enemy, your significance would cease to exist with time. You may use the opportunity as a starting point but never could live with such role description for long. Gets into the inner circle/space and create an acute need or imminent role for you. Cats have done that. Cats did not limit their role to just catching rats and killing them. They also acquired human imagination and companionship and thereby enjoys great comfort from man.

How the corporate employees have to optimize the opportunity and use them in the best possible way, better they should learn from cats. It is not having an opportunity automatically scripts or defines success, but seeing and creating an opportunity out of an opportunity or ‘within an opportunity’ alone ultimately makes the success to flow.

It is important that every organization and the respective HR must check whether the employment opportunities are created and people are recruited by various departments purely based on the above law. Cat could be very smart but the same smartness cannot be expected out of many employees.

The corporate bosses also must verify whether they favour some subordinate because they some other as rat and if so such organization would experience only the game of rat and cat and not productivity and success.

Dr S Ranganathan