Once upon a time, there was a hare who loved making fun of the tortoise for being too slow. “Do you ever get anywhere?” he asked with a mocking laugh.
“Yes,” replied the tortoise, “and I get there sooner than you think. I’ll run you a race and prove it.”
The hare was much amused at the idea of running a race with the tortoise, but for the fun of it, he agreed. So, the fox, who had consented to act as judge, marked the distance and started the runners off.
The hare was soon far out of sight, and to make the tortoise feel very deeply how ridiculous it was for him to try a race with a hare, he lay down beside the course to take a nap until the tortoise should catch up.
The tortoise meanwhile kept going, slowly but steadily, and, after a time, passed where the hare was sleeping. But the hare slept on very peacefully; and when at last he did wake up, the tortoise was near the goal.
The hare now ran his swiftest, but he could not overtake the tortoise in time. Moral of the story: The race is not for the swift. It’s who gathers money little by little that makes it grow.
This great African folktale is a great story that Kenyans can relate to, especially going by recent headlines of people losing money to fraudulent schemes.
Although much is said about the bad actors fleecing people, little is mentioned about the victims’ folly.
Let’s face it; many of us are tripped into these schemes because of one thing: greed. Our desire to get rich quick and to “keep up with the Kamaus” has often caused us great suffering.
It is said that without greed we would still be living in caves. Indeed, left unchecked, this insatiable desire to get more quickly can be destructive.
Have you ever been promised a high return at no risk whatsoever if you invest in a particular scheme? Have you ever been asked to invest in an institution or scheme which is neither regulated by, nor registered with, a regulatory body?
Have you ever been promised higher returns the more people you recruit into your investment scheme? Have you ever been lured into an investment scheme with extraordinarily high returns?
Have you ever been pressured into making an investment decision because the opportunity will close, or because the first investors make much higher returns than later investors? Have you ever been guaranteed a high return, regardless of circumstances?
Have you ever been bombarded with testimonials, especially from people who have made a lot of money, or who constantly seem to be on holiday, or surrounded by expensive cars and houses? If yes, run rapidly in the opposite direction.
Do not let greed (or your wilful ignorance) override your good judgement. Choose patience to achieve your financial goals.
Just as the hare lost its race to the tortoise due to extreme overconfidence and arrogance, the greedy are very likely to figure out why “history rhymes” and so many people are caught off guard by it.
