Akin OduwoleAs Man sojourn on earth, he will always encounter problems that will drive him into creating solutions. Man has always been creative to pattern solutions after the creator’s concept. The colorful textile reminds me of the cloth worn by the butterfly or peacock. The airplane patterned after the birds are the awesome works of mankind learning from an all knowing God. I always constantly remember the stars when I switch on a light bulb, ships reminds me of the whales in the deep sea, cars remind me of the mobility abilities of the horse. Just to mention a few as time won’t permit to also look at how computers are patterned after the human brain. It is also so easy to see evolution in all strata of life. Things keeps getting better. As this is a write up for my printing diary I must not forget to mention that the concept of the printing press itself came out of a need to mass produce, probably the Bible or Quran. Awesome God creating intelligent men! Men who sometimes become arrogant. Many who refuses to be arrogant becomes careless and extremely carefree. An attitude that is known to produce subtle destruction. Corona virus in the past few months have subdued mankind, great nations living in fear. Countries known to be world powers who in the past have introduced serious visa sanctions against other weak and more vulnerable countries have closed their borders not only to the weak but even stronger contemporaries. Isn’t it amazing how an unseen microorganism is causing immediate policy formulation? How about military might? Those also seem to have come to nothing. Intelligence report couldn’t smoke out the virus, neither can the speed of spread be close to the speed of the military taking down its prey. Unknown invisible soldiers have invaded almost every town and the plan is to bring down the population of nations while the trained military of those nations watch helplessly.
The reality is beginning to hit us massively as humans but there are a few lessons here; 1. Man is not all knowing, so we all need to submit to a superior being who can order our steps accurately 2. The world is vulnerable so we need to go back to being each other’s keeper. It is easy to see how exposed we are with the experience of the last few weeks. Everyone who is strong MUST protect the weak and vulnerable ONLY for the sake of they “the strong”. After all it is popularly said that “he that is down need fear no fall!” 3. It is so easy to see that no matter your skin colour, gender, tribe, height or religion. We all share something in common – The will to live. So enough of the division, we all need to work together to make the world a better place. 4. Death is NOT an option, so after all our trade war, price war and marketing gimmicks we must come back to the realization that we never should never wish anyone dead. How does this affect our printing business? Let’s break it down, we will have to live with the effect well after this virus is long gone, so we need to realize that as the human body builds its immunity against any foreign bodies, we also need some business immunity. It might not be the time to invest in a new machine but it is definitely a time to maintain what you currently have and properly too. It is not a time to lay off staff but it is a time for some dialogues and agreements between employee and employer so as to weather the storm together, it might not be wise to import alone but share the risk by importing materials and consumables in groups. It’s also time to boost our business immunity by reducing unnecessary and reckless spending, be prudent, and operate on a low key till the business is strong again. It is also not a time to experiment, do what will bring you money, your cash flow is a measure of your business immune system at this time. We see a call for retired nurses and doctors to come out to help in stabilizing victims, in the same way we need ancient wisdom from those who have experience. It might be a time to get in some rugged consultants, get into collaborations and partnerships. The race is against time and we must first survive. It is not a time to compete but to collaborate. One interesting observation is that we are seeing a cease fire from all other warfare (no more ego trips, no trade war between china and the USA, even our herds men and boko haram took a chill pill). The moral is that “Once we fight the same enemy all other warfare seizes”. It will be good to see unprofessional and unethical practices, price war, Nigeria printing business not remaining in Nigeria, division against tribal and religious ground as our common enemy so we can fight together to make our doing printing business better. A more interesting observation is how in times of corona virus crisis we run home to family. It’s as though home is the safest place and truly it is, because that is where we are less vulnerable. How comfortable is your home? As a printer where do you even call home? This is food for thought because home is where you run to for safety and protection. Finally, the world is hopeful for a solution, the entire world got excited when the Chinese announced they no longer have fresh cases, even greater excitement when the Cuban doctors arrived Italy. Solutions and fresh ideas have a way of bringing HOPE. If anyone finds a solution this period he will definitely “blow”. Solutions to problems affecting us is an opportunity to “blow”, so my dear colleagues it’s a time to get super creative, this season must help us with fresh thinking. Signing out! Please be safe! Thoughts from: Akin Oduwole CE @ Technology Global
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