November 9, 2011
They say business is a legal robbery. And they also say worry is an interest paid by those who borrow trouble. The above two statements tell the reality and various aspects of business men in many aspects in which they tell basic grounds and daily routines of many businesses and their respective owners. Although it is not possible to think of progress of a nation without businessmen, these people suffer due to their own complications, system underway and other factors which we heard of them complaining in the many meetings organized.
Yesterday I was into a meeting which was concerned on the progress and functions of an association, which the company I am working in is a member. The gathering consisted company owners and their respective representatives. It is about the garment and textile sector in here. One of the things I observed in this gathering is the looks people have when one represent a company and when one owns a company, but the issue they carry is same and equally relevant to the companies and the association. This is one of the signs of immaturity of the company owners on the look they have on the respective representatives.
One of the interesting things I faced was a hot debate and confrontation between few members, which sounded like a teenage character. And I was wondering as to how such people administer their companies effectively and efficiently and make it achievable on the challenges and crisis most of them are in. However, there are matured and far sighted individuals who tried to make everything calm, but those owners who were like into hot confrontations and unseemly characters shows that this given association has much things to do in developing codes of conduct in doing its meetings and handling its own affairs.
It is also a reflection and manifestation of a feature and face of the association in which personality and other hidden interests which few individuals carry are reflected in the meeting. Association is about communal goal, concern and factors. Where as, in here, it is clearly observed that few individuals power monopoly in which they assume that if such people are not there, everything is over and dead. This is one of the wrong assumptions many people and institutions in here have. This is like conclaves we see everywhere in which few people are always considered as life savers and the rest is just observer. NOT.
When associations are formed, it is from the motive of obtaining equal benefits and advantages to all members in which there are no big fish things in here. All are equally accountable and responsible to the associations, but in most cases, we observe it is more of exclusive groups in which few people dominate the others and there are always few who are indirectly and in unwritten terms, who are sole leaders and decision makers of such clubs. In this case, issues are same and the styles and way of looking at things is routine and similar in every year and terms. The good thing in yesterday was they add few young entrepreneurs to the former leading committee so that they can bring about change.
One of the other things observed in this gathering is that there are many company owners who are members. Most have same issues and problems, they took loans from the bank, and they could not pay back since there is no market, raw material or adequate input supply, and policy issues that hinder their activities. There are also owners who have no issues like such companies, they go beyond such things. In this varied circumstances, there is two possibilities in here to exist in as association.
The first one is to have a separate association for the two sectors or companies after identifying the relationship of their issues and circumstances they face and how far they can be integrated. The second one is, if they are supposed to go in one association, the need to be tolerant and understanding between such two separate entities, in which they should compromise than being concerned with one’s own interest and advantage. The need to consider one’s neighbor problem as one’s own is a necessary prerequisite in here. Otherwise, they could be seen as rats and cats every time they meet.
The point regarding associations is about communal interest and concern which gives birth to common vision and goals to the future. If members of a given association do not share the pains and visions they have in acceptable range, they live in two different realms which is irreconcilable. When they share same difficulties and challenges, they could have fruitful vision and goals as far they have a patience and perseverance to reach to point they should reach which requires determination and commitment from all sides.
Most associations or clubs are born and die at the same date in which their date of establishment is tantamount to the date of their burial due to many factors. The first one is due to lack of committed workers and members to it. The second factor is due to lack of common interest and concern they have for the achievement of their goals and objectives. The third one is due to lack of clarity of their vision. The fourth one is due to lack of the knowledge and information in terms of accountability, acting as an individual and as member of that given association in which personalities take the major share than the vision.
While such aspects of our life is going on, after the meeting, I went back to my personal concerns and the result of such meting have in my daily routine, and I said to myself, nothing except listening to peoples opinion and concern. When such concern becomes my personal interests, I pray that good shall come and they have a nice and a prosperous life to the future.
