Come Together

When I was in the army in 1971, I heard a very interesting story about two men who were sworn enemies from childhood. They hated one another with a deep passion and their nightmares became a reality when they were conscripted into the South African Army. Not because they were conscripted - we were all conscripted – but because they ended up in the same platoon, sharing the same bungalow! They fought almost daily and this was a drain on their fellow soldiers during bootcamp.

Their officers decided on a course of action that they had used before. They put these two characters into a helicopter and flew them into the desert, where they had them store all their food and water on the top of a steep, rocky hill. The only way to get to the top of this hill was to climb up the sheer sides together, using ropes and the training they had received during bootcamp. If they didn’t get to the top of the hill, where they had stored their food, water and radio, they would die of thirst and hunger. They were forced to work together to achieve this common goal.

As you can imagine, many serious fights ensued, but eventually they worked together to get to the top of the hill, where they ate and drank and called the chopper in to fetch them. They became the best of friends, went into business together when they got out of the army, and did very well. They remained friends for life. Their common goal forced them to overcome their differences and find a way to work together. The principles they learnt that day, and the discipline, teamwork, and responsibility they learned in the army, helped them to become successful in life and in their business together.

When people are passionate about a common objective, they can put aside their differences and achieve amazing results. Joint Ventures is a vehicle that can help people reach their goals, because together, we can do amazing things!

Robin J. Elliott www.dollarmakers.com