Take 5: 15 January 2018 by Mr Teng Jun Yuan

Good Morning Mdm Tan, Mr Chung, Mrs Selva, Fellow Colleagues and Gessians,

Today, I am going to share with you a story about perseverance and integrity worth remembering and thinking about.

A successful businessman was growing old and knew it was time to choose a successor. As his children are not keen on taking over the business, he decided to choose a successor from one of his directors. So he called all the directors to the board room.

He said “It is time for me to retire and choose the next CEO. I have decided to choose one of you. I am going to give each one of you a seed. You are to plant the seed, water it, and come back here one year from today. I will then judge the plants you bring, and the one I choose will be the next CEO.”

Jim, one of the directors, went home and excitedly told his wife the story. Together they got the pot, compost and soil to plant the seed. Every day, he watered it and watched monitored the progress closely.

Three weeks went by and the other directors were bragging how well their seeds were growing. Every day, Jim checked his pot. There was no sign of growth. After five weeks of no growth, Jim was pretty discouraged. However, he did not give up and continue to care for the seed.

After six months, there is still no sign of growth. He wondered he had over watered it or got the wrong kind of fertilizer as his colleagues continued to brag about how tall their plants were growing; some of them were now trees. Despite this, he continued to find other ways to make the seed grow.

Still no growth after one year.

The year was up and all the directors were instructed to bring their plants into the office for judging. Jim told his wife how embarrassed he will be when he brings in an empty pot to the office. However, she encouraged him to be honest. Jim brought the pot to the board room and heard the snickers of the other directors. Their plants were a variety of shapes and sizes.

When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room. Jim tried to hide at the back, totally embarrassed. The CEO was praising the directors on the growth and beauty of their plants.

“Today, I am pleased to announce that one of you will be my new CEO!”

From the front of the room, the CEO asked Jim to come up and Jim froze in fear that he was about to lose his job. Walking slowly to the front of the room, there was pity on the faces of the other directors as they imagined Jim was going to be fired.

The boss asked Jim what happened to his seed and Jim told the CEO that despite his best efforts, the seed never grew. The CEO then asked everyone to be seated except Jim. He announced, “I would like to introduce you all to your new boss.”

The other directors were shocked and questioned “How can he be the new boss when his plant didn’t even grow?”

The CEO explained, “One year ago, I gave everyone in this room a seed. What you did not know was that each seed had been boiled and was a dead seed. It was absolutely impossible for any of them to grow.”

Jim was the only one in this room with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. He did not substitute it with another seed like the rest of you did. Therefore, he has shown courage, honesty and integrity and I know he will run this company with conscience.”

This parable communicates a simple truth: on your journey to success. Don’t be tempted to take moral shortcuts. No achievement is worth compromising your values.

Seek to grow in character and integrity. Integrity is a foundation that can support a lifetime of success and achievement.

If you plant honesty, you will reap trust

If you plant goodness, you will reap friends

If you plant humility, you will reap greatness

If you plant perseverance, you will reap contentment

If you plant hard work, you will reap success

On that note, I wish everyone a good week ahead. Thank you.

Onward Gessians!