Daily Inspiration: From Dominance To Complete Irrelevance

Just Promoted To Irrelevance

When Qwerty Uiop invented the
typewriter, the timing of its emergence
was impeccable. Everyone knew they
needed to have their letters typewritten
in the most arranged of manner but
nobody knew how to arrive at that with
the use of a machine and all Qwerty did
was to give the world this device.
This was the 1860’s and letters were
mostly handwritten. As with most new
products, the rich and government owned
establishment were quick to acquire it
and soon afterwards it was available to
the middle class. In a few decades, it had
grown to become an indispensible part of
both corporate and personal life as it
became cheaper and easier to use as time
went on until the 1990s. Events soon
began taking unexpected turn when
computers were introduced.
At first, it didn’t seem to pose so much of
a threat to the typewriter makers who
were already multi-millionaires; for the
computers were so large, complex and
expensive to own and maintain so the
masses couldn’t afford to buy one, so
everyone felt safe. But the computers
were fast becoming smaller, simpler,
cheaper and most of all, personal, by this
time, the typewriter makers were
becoming troubled. Although they have
been improving on the typewriter too,
but it was no match for the computer. By
1900’s, computers had gained a fair share
of the market.
And 2000s, typewriters had become so
obsolete that to find one, would be like
looking for a pin in haystack. It is very
easy to be promoted to irrelevance and
the easiest and simplest way to do this is
to do nothing. We have come to live at a
fast time: an age in which time is the
most important commodity. The
workplace is changing at terrific speed and
pace, each and every day, companies hire
smarter people. Competition has become
so fierce that to survive it at all, you
would have to lead it. And to lead the
competition is like skiing in the high
waves.
First of all, you must understand it, then
innovatively find a way of being far ahead,
this definitely would take hours upon
hours upon hours of hard work and
perseverance. Today everybody wants to
bank with Guaranty Trust Bank, we all
trust First Bank, but they are not the only
two banks in town; there are more than
twenty four others. Everybody wants to
go to Harvard, we all wish we could
attend MIT, University of Aberdeen,
Cambridge and so on, but they are not
the only universities in the world.
Somehow, they have managed to figure
out what the people really needed and
have worked so hard to offer the best
available for decades such that they have
run others into near obscurity with their
high level of excellence.
I sing in an orchestra and play the piano.
I have often had that wow moment when
you render a classical piano piece and
everyone is so awed and they all make a
noise inspired by the music that they the
music that they get lost in its maze. But
some time ago, a thought inspiring
incidence occurred. I had become
comfortable with my little level of success
and didn’t bother to practice or seek to
keep the cutting edge of my cunning
sharp and somehow, although not
immediately aware of its consequences, I
was being promoted, albeit to
irrelevance.
Then one day while I was still there,
another pianist was flown in from another
state miles and miles away. And while he
sat, grinding away at the piano and to the
awe and electrification of the enchanted
audience, I realized how irrelevant I had
become to the orchestra. Although what
he played I could have played also, had I
practiced, but I had lost value, and as the
orchestra was concerned, as a pianist I
was of no use to it.
When MTN came to Nigeria, the odds
were stacked against it pretty hard. It
was during the days in which the
Government-owned Nitel monopolized
everything. In those days, less than than
10% of Nigerians owned a phone, and of
this portion, a great part struggled to pay
the ever high tariffs. It didn’t look like
Nigerians needed phones, and besides
when they eventually manage to get one,
would they be able to pay their call bills?
Lots of questions remained unanswered
but they continued.
When eventually, they finally gained the
licence to operate, the banks would not
provide them the necessary funds
needed, for they were too skeptic as to if
their business idea would fly at all. Nitel
was too reluctant to realize the
implication of the that move and before
they could realize it, nobody including the
most loyal of customers needed NITEL
soon afterwards for MTN has offered far
more reliable and cheaper services at
rates everyone could afford and in a few
decades has risen to become the number
telecommunication company the country
has, boasting itself in its over 50 million
subscriber base.
But the Question is: Where is Nitel now?
It easy to move from dominance to
complete irrelevance. For an individual it
may mean losing a job but on a corporate
scale, its effect is far-reaching and could
go as far as resulting in bankruptcy, a
condition far more worse. What would
you have? Work hard and remain not just
relevant but dominant or fold your hands
and watch while you get promoted to a
position of cheer irrelevance like I was.
Think about it.
[Article by Igbokwe Ifeanyi]