Why we should all be more like ants
It is difficult to look up to a creature that scurries around on the ground beneath your feet, but have you ever looked down at an ant and admired their strength, agility and general work ethic?
No, neither have I. But if you’ve seen ant-related films like Ants or Antman, you probably understand why they are such inspirational insects. Though these little six legged creepy crawlies may seem like they lead boring, menial lives, they can certainly teach us a few things about leadership, motivation and teamwork.
1. Ants climb towards their workload, not away from it
Whilst we do not have the strength to carry objects four times our weight, we can take a lot from the attitude ants apply to their daily work. Ants are not intimidated by their workload, nor do they procrastinate to try and avoid the work they know must be done.
2. Teamwork
Much like humans, a single ant can only do so much. But once they put their heads together, they can tackle great obstacles and achieve goals that would be impossible alone. If you are looking for quality results in your business, you will need to encourage staff to pull their weight and work as ants do, as a team.
3. Organisation and communication
It’s as though ants share one mind, fixated on achieving the same goal. This comes from organisation, structure and communication. If your workers could all be thinking in the same way and moving in the same direction, as these amazing insects do, the business would be more productive and successful. One way to achieve this is to ensure when each employee is hired, they share similar values and have the same goals for the company.
Once everyone is working towards the same goal and communicating with one another, the success will follow.
4. Perseverance
An army of ants never give up. Once they’ve started their journey to pinch your crumbs, they will make it back to the nest one way or another. It’s this level of perseverance and determination in both ants and employees that leads to great success. Imagine if your company had staff that were as adamant that a job had to be finished as ants do.
5. Save for a rainy day
Ants don’t eat all their crumbs at once, they save enough for rainy days in case they need a back-up plan. To apply this to your business, save money where you can, you never really know what’s round the corner. If we could all take a lesson or two from these industrious, resourceful creatures, both productivity and overall success would increase.
