Key business lessons from Maasai Mara wildebeest migration

For the last two weeks, tourists have been camping at the Maasai Mara Game Reserve, pitching tents along the banks of The Mara River to experience the unique event known as the wildebeest migration.

This occasion, dubbed the eighth wonder of the World, takes place annually from July through to October, where over two million animals migrate from the Serengeti National Park in Tanzania to the greener pastures of the Maasai Mara National Reserve.

Also President Uhuru Kenyatta joined tourists two Saturdays ago to view the great migration.

Nature’s lessons are not complex and they work! How?

Cut your losses

Herd animals accept change and recognise when they have to move on from their current location to better pastures. Nature has equipped them with the ability to accurately assess their situation, “cut their losses,” and move on.

One of the toughest things to do – in business and in life – is cut losses and get out of a bad situation.

To walk away from something that just isn’t working – throw in the towel, give up the ghost, and go spend your time, effort, money, and everything else on something different.

Have you ever seen a friend or loved one in a really bad situation?

Maybe they were trapped in a job they clearly despised, or a relationship where they were being taken advantage of and treated poorly.

Maybe they were throwing money into a business that was just a pure money pit and as far as you could tell was never going to produce anything.

The problem is how human psychology works. Basically, the more invested in something you become, the harder and harder it becomes to leave it.

Zebras, gazelles, and wildebeests know how to scan their environment and recognise the subtle and visible dynamics that are fundamentally changing their world.

They understand when their areas of pasture will no longer sustain the entire herd. So, these animals make a strategic decision to change.

Take the risk

While there is no guarantee of their success, they still undertake a difficult migration journey that brings many risks of failure. Despite the risks, their survival instinct is strong. Ultimately, they know that if they stay where they are, they will die!

In the massive vastness of a global economy it’s no different.

Failure to strategize will cause even the largest and soundest company to stumble, lose market share and potentially be absorbed by a competitor.

So, wherever you find yourself, a well-thought out plan is an essential roadmap in achieving a desired goal.

The fact of the matter is, for most of us, enduring in the world of business is usually a complex survival struggle as well.

There are many pitfalls, threats and considerations that influence success.

In The Mara it is hunger, thirst, predators or seasonality that impact survival – in the urban jungle it is shortage of capital, a lack of resources, competitors or an ever-changing economy that we have to deal with.

Companies and individuals that are not constantly aware of their surroundings and the potential threats they contain will face a business death — loss of income, acquisition or perhaps bankruptcy.

Yet for those that are able to master their skills and learn how to develop them, they will find that the business world is always brimming with opportunities through which they can thrive.

Mr Waswa is the managing director of Outdoors Africa. Email: [email protected]