Dead parts decay first….from grubs to woodpecker – HR message

Only the dead and damaged parts of the body of every living system get affected first by the parasites and pathogens. Even the termites attack only the dead parts of the trees. The birds and other small animals that build their hole nest only in the dead parts of the trees. The woodpecker pecks only the dead parts of the tree to gather grubs or insects because the dead parts of the trees are the best-chosen dwelling place by the worms and insects.

The message is that only the dead and decayed parts in the living system are the first entry point for all parasites and pathogens. Death and decay are parts and parcel of our growth and development and hence it cannot be prevented or avoided.

The above biological event conveys a different management message to the corporate people at large. The management message is that only the dead and degenerative thoughts, feelings, emotions, attitude etc., pave way for our destruction. Such thoughts will definitely diminish our creativity, growth and achievement orientation. The negative elements like fear, anxiety, worries, repeated complaints, vengeance, wrath etc., enter into our mind only when we offer residency to such dead and decayed thoughts or feelings or emotions.

Such thoughts would certainly enter into all our minds. No one can ever remain free from worries, anxiety, regrets and wrath. We can live without such feelings or emotion only when we are totally dead and not partially dead. The only way we can deal such dead and degenerative thoughts is by not allowing these negative feelings to settle with us for long. We cannot prevent their entry. Even for a short while if we accommodate the above degenerative feelings like fear, anxiety, worries, regrets, vengeance and wrath in us, we may find it hard to evict them. In a short time they colonize in us deeply. And much before we could evict them, they would totally damage and erode our positive energy, peace, happiness and creativity.

Such feelings are not only damaged, they are equally damaging also. Nature has allowed the dead and decayed parts of every living body to be exploited by others only to support the life and existence of many but also to support the food chain and food web. Further, through such process, the dead parts are also removed from the system. The adjacent living cells replenish the dead cells or parts sooner or later. But the above is not same with the human mind and its thoughts. Insults and injuries only degenerate the mind. Therefore healing and preventing the ill effects of certain thoughts should be our primary focus. It is always said, “Prevention is better than cure”.

Dr S Ranganathan