How I transitioned from surviving to living?

In life and business, direct tools like coercion or force can lead to short-term gains but create long-term harm. What if we could transform these tools into collaborative, value-driven strategies that benefit everyone? For instance, Let us look at “Mugging”. People mug others to get money from others, so that they could make their ends meet. The people who mug others are not happy to do it, the people who get mugged are so unhappy and sometimes get harmed physically too. Let us take another instance, the Indian parents are hitting their kids, why? so that they discipline their children. But, like the previous case, none is happy to do it. So, can we do it in a way that benefits everyone. Sounds Familiar? We are trying to solve this using capitalism’s principles.

Let us look at the below steps to do it.

1. Identify the Core Objective

Clarify your goals: Understand the underlying need or desire.
Assess motivations: Reflect on why you want to achieve it.

For instance, In the case of Indian Parents hitting their kids, the end-goal of the action is nothing but, disciplining. The thing wrong here is the METHOD used for disciplining the kids.

2. Understand the Impact of Direct Tools

Evaluate consequences: Consider the legal, ethical, and social costs.
Acknowledge harm: Recognize how others are negatively affected.

We, millenials have ourselves faced the harmful effects of hitting kids. The direct con is the child resenting the parent and the sibling for not helping them. The indirect con is the sibling resenting both themselves for not helping their sibling and the parent for the emotional hurt for making them witness the punishment.

3. Reframe the Objective into a Value Proposition

Shift perspective: How can you achieve your goal while adding value?
Identify mutual benefits: Find what others need and how you can help.

Now, all we need to do is the change the METHOD deployed in the situation to achieve the goal. Let us take an example from my childhood when I was thrashed. I was not thrashed much by parents when compared to my sibling. I only have data only for my case, so let us focus on that. When I got thrashed, it was because I was overplaying with my neighbours that I was causing trouble to my neighbours. So, instead of my mom (She had only hit me once, the major punishments were conducted by my dad on my sibling - twin) hitting me, she could have hit me and added some LOVE component to it, which she did, I loved my Mom. Let us take another scenario, where I was punished by my Head Mistress for not tying my hair properly. She punished me for a long time that would have worked simple cases, but for me it would not because, I had a stressful home. Instead, she should have UNDERSTOOD (EMPATHY) my problems and informed by parents. So, eventually, after some time, she informed my Mom and my mom tied my hair properly. So, that is how, it has to be done.

4. Develop a Mutually Beneficial Strategy

Innovate solutions: Meet your goals through products or services people want.
Leverage skills: Use your talents and resources to provide value.

In the story of me getting punished by my HM (Head Mistress), I was eventually understood, by them contacting my Mom. But, it was sorta late. Because, this was a missed opportunity to capitalise on the problem early on. They could have informed my mom early on and thereby making me a bit less resentful of them and they might have had an ALUMNA, who would be GLAD to reach out to them for the future endeavours. But, they had a lot of people, and I am no longer hateful of them because of time and I am UNDERSTANDING their pains too. I still don’t want to collaborate with them ever, because of the way, they ill-treated my SICK Mom.

5. Establish Ethical and Transparent Practices

Set clear guidelines: Ensure legal and ethical methods.
Promote fairness: Build trust through equitable actions.

Anyway, we could have avoided this DRAMA, if we had just followed a set of rules for taking care of students with issues. Like, if I am opening a school, and I see a child not taking care of themselves, even when I had pointed out, I would directly empower them to do it.

By following this framework, you transform direct, often harmful tools into ethical strategies that foster collaboration and mutual success, benefiting both you and society.

Keywords: ethical business, collaboration, value-driven strategies, mutual success

What do you think? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.