158 Business Fables That Will Affect Your Life

Author: Gao Ming
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-09-01
Features: When numerous managers seek management wisdom in the vast sea of management books, they often encounter confusion and bewilderment. The obscure language filled with professional terms and charts, coupled with the significant gap between management theory and practice, makes it nearly impossible to connect the two. The severe disconnect between theory and practice has become a common ailment among management theorists. Thus, we attempt to seek alternative answers. Although this idea may seem somewhat unrealistic, it is better than talking to oneself without considering the audience. Let alone those management scholars who endlessly preach perfect theories they themselves do not believe in. As a discipline with strong practical and operational characteristics, management has long been in a phase of exploration akin to "crossing the river by feeling the stones." This has led to the fated cyclical nature of management theory: following trends has become fashionable. In fact, for managers, adhering to certain principles is essential. Blindly following trends or chasing fashion can only make us more lost, and for businesses, the outcome is predictable—it will not be optimistic. When we broaden our perspective, we discover that many fables contain profound management philosophies, even though the authors' original intentions were not necessarily so. As a literary form, the significance of fables far exceeds their literal meaning, leaving us with vast space for reflection, where we can freely explore. The result of delving into the deeper implications of these fables is this book. We have imbued them with more management significance, as their vividness, conciseness, and liveliness are intended to offer managers more insights. They should not be confined to mere words or limited by the authors' thought processes. Otherwise, the broad and inclusive spirit of fables would lose its meaning.