![]() |
Image Attribution: www.lobosocial.com |
Once
upon a time, in a land far away - before the Internet - there lived a buffalo
hunter and a seed farmer. Buffalos were plentiful and slow, and would graze for
hours on the grassy plains. Because the flat lands were populated by bountiful
bison, the seed farmer found very little land on which to plant, cultivate and
harvest his crops. Farming subsisted on small hilly plots here and there -
unsuitable for grazing.
Buffalo
hunting was easy. These herbivores were huge and habitual. The hunter - without
much skill or effort - in a couple of hours - could "harvest" all of
the meat, hide, and hooves he and his family could handle. Others were
attracted to the bounty. Times were good to be a buffalo hunter! Eventually,
the hunting became more difficult, the hunters outnumbered the hunted and
buffalo became extinct. Now what?
As
the hairy hunted's haunts - the grassy plains - became less populated by the
buffalos, the seed farmer found acres of fertile soil from which to extract the
Earth's green goodness - crops. Although the growing cycle was long, the work
tedious, the benefits and payback uncertain, the seed farmer continued to
plant. When the Earth's bonanza was broadcast - the seed farmer was
overwhelmed. Seeds beget seeds, the output grew (sorry) and the farmer was able
to feed his family forever.
Searching
for new prey, the buffalo hunter happened upon acres of cultivation and decided
to become a seed farmer - how tough could it be, right? After all, he was a
mighty buffalo hunter. Unfortunately, the buffalo hunter failed at farming. The
hunting chops he possessed - sitting around and shooting a large animal -
didn't translate well to the skills required for seed farming - patience,
perseverance, nurturing, tilling and harvesting.
The
buffalo hunter eventually was forced to sell fax machines. Hmmm, how many of
those are around today.
So,
can you guess which one has a transactional focus vs building relationships?
Allen
C. Buchanan, SIOR, is
a principal with Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services in
Orange. He can be reached at abuchanan@lee-associates.com or 714.564.7104. His website is allencbuchanan.com.
No comments :
Post a Comment