The Story
You stumble upon a dark cave lit only by faint, flickering torch light. As your eyes start to adjust, you notice a group of people shackled to the wall, and discover they've been here their entire lives, never experiencing natural sunlight.
You feel it's your duty to unshackle these men and women so they can escape the confines of the darkness. You move towards the man closest to you as he's the only one making eye contact and furiously try to unshackle him from the wall while excitedly telling the group about the "outside". He, as well as the group, is a bit startled by your strange, confusing descriptions.
After much struggling, you're finally able to un-cuff the man and start beckoning him to follow you out of the dimly lit, dank cave. He says no one's ever been away from this wall and would rather just stay. Not one to give up easily, you continue telling him about the beautiful landscape, the sunrises and sunsets, and the fields of green. You realize fairly quickly that something's being lost in translation and think, "How do I explain something so majestic and awe-inspiring to someone who's never even seen a sunset before?".
Luckily this man is a bit more fearless than the rest, you discover he has always taken a few more risks than the others (or so he tells you). You've found your man. As you woo him about the benefits of the "outside", he asks curious questions like, "What will people think of me if I go to this "outside" world?", and "Why should I go when I'm perfectly comfortable here?". You stumble through a few answers but manage to bring him to the mouth of the cave as you talk.
As the man rounds the corner to the exterior of the cave, he shrieks "My eyes, they're burning from this fire!". You tell him soothingly to calm his nerves and let his eyes adjust to the light. He rubs his eyes and begins to blink. Then something magical happens. You witness him begin to
experience the "outside" and can tell he's in absolute shock. "I can't believe I've been in that cave my entire life and have never seen this!". You want to give him the I-told-you-so bit, but remain silent. "We need to tell everyone about this and get them out here!", he proclaims. You think to yourself that this isn't going to be easy, remembering the struggle it to just to get the most fearless of the bunch "outside".
Just then, the man races back inside to where his friends are, but he hasn't had time to let his eyes re-adjust to the darkness, so he's stumbling, frantically feeling the walls to lead him back. As he enters, talking excitedly and appearing blind, the group wonders what horrible things could have happened "outside" to make him like this. The man prods them to join us "outside" as we furiously unbind the rest of the group's shackles. They are now more skeptical, however, due to this curious behavior. Most are reluctant to join us, but a few of the braver souls begin to creep towards the "outside"...
The Analogy
As an entrepreneur, the most difficult job you have is leading people satisfied with the status quo into the light, explaining something as beautiful as a sunset to a blind person, and getting them to do the same.
A wise man once said, "There are only two functions in a business: manufacturing and marketing". They both never end, and adults learn through stories. You don't think the Odyssey and Illiad were just for entertainment, do you?
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