The Industry Effect

It’s funny how we often rediscover things that we instinctively did as kids by reading textbooks and articles. Just tonight I was reading the Corporate Financial Management (3rd Edition) book and reflected on the Behavioral Principle of Finance described in Chapter 2: “When All Else Fails, Look at What Others Are Doing for Guidance”. Thinking about it, as kids we always follow this principle. When we don’t know how to react or what to do in specific situations, we naturally start imitating our parents or people around us. In essence, we’re adapting in real-time and learning from our immediate environment. We do that as adults as well, but perhaps less instinctively. That might be why we need to be reminded of such principles. I see this as an indication that we need to be more in tune with our environment and gain more from it, whether it’s your boss, your colleagues, or your spouse. People have a lot to offer, all we need to do is listen, integrate and process the knowledge, and grow from it.

Talking about growth and success, in my opinion organizations and individuals can both benefit from this simple principle, if intelligently applied. Through research of case studies and company profiles for instance, we have the potential of gaining tremendous insight, whether the objective is to start your own company or becoming more competitive.

I’d like to hear what your perspective on this topic is! Please feel free to comment.