Someday soon, when the sun isn’t too hot on your back, go outside and watch a few ants crawl across your sidewalk. If you think about it, there is quite a bit that an ant can teach us, about work, and about life in general. For starters, have you ever seen an ant taking a lazy day? Or perhaps you’ve come across one lying out on a mini-beach towel. I certainly haven’t. The only thing I have ever seen ants do is work, and work together.
Others have noticed this phenomenon as well. For example, the Book of Proverbs describes the industrious nature of the ant in chapter 6 verses 6 through eight: “Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise. Which, having no captain, overseer or ruler, provides her supplies in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest.” Even back in biblical times, the self-reliance and work ethic of the ant was recognized.
So how like the ant are you? Could you accomplish what you need, get what you desire without a ruler or overseer? If not, perhaps you are not doing what you are meant to do. Motivation from an outside source should not be a requirement for your advancement. If you are in the right career for you, the self-motivation and drive that you feel should be all you need to strive for the next goal.
Another characteristic of the ant’s life that may parallel our own is their practice of gathering supplies when needed, and harvesting when warranted. If you were to watch any farmer throughout the seasons, you would see that they plant just at the start of the growing season, and harvest when the plants are ripe. Can the same be said for the average salesperson? Unfortunately, many salespeople fail to either prepare and cultivate their potential clients, or “harvest” them by closing the sale when the time is right.
By simply watching the acts of an ant, a person can learn a great deal. The question is, what will you learn, and what will you use?