Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Sloth / Laziness

“Laziness travels so slowly that poverty soon overtakes him.”

Benjamin Franklin

This is one of the sins which has changed in scope and meaning over the centuries. It has been described as apathy of the individual towards his religious duties and in the modern context also has come to mean a failure to utilize ones talents.

The Auto Industry in the US has been a victim of laziness and indifference. While Auto Industries the world over were innovating and moving with the times, the Big 3 in America were focused on maximizing returns on segments like light trucks and SUV’s. The sudden volatility in petrol prices and the downturn in the markets have left these companies with few products to offer. The following table shows the sales figures for Oct 08

The only segment of growth has been the small car segment, while the SUV and large car segment has shown the maximum fall in sales.

The story of the Big 3 is like the tale of the Ant and the Grasshopper. The Ant and the Grasshopper In the summers the ant is very busy creature collecting food for the winter months. Once a grasshopper came across a colony of ants and asked them “Why are you so hard at work? Enjoy the warm weather”. The Ants replied that they we stocking up for the winter and recommended that the Grasshopper do the same. The Grasshopper replied, “Why bother when there is so much lying around” and continued on its pursuit of enjoyment. When the winter came and there was no food, the Grasshopper realized the value of the advice, “It is best to prepare for the days of necessity”.

"Failure is not the only punishment for laziness; there is also the success of others"

Jules Renard

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