Noah's Ark and the Art of Building a Business

The majority of people in this country don't profess to have a religious belief, but that doesn't mean we can't learn from the Holy Bible or other Holy books.  A few year's ago I found an inspirational article on the web from Woodstock Baptist Church entitled 'Everything I need to know about life, I learnt from Noah's Ark'. I would like to update it and call it 'Almost everything you need to know about  business is contained in the story of Noah's Ark'. because the words hold true for the business community. I hope Woodstock Baptist Church will approve!


1.  There is often only one chance in life to do something and if that moment has passed then catching up is impossible, so don't miss the boat.
2.  There is only one earth and whatever we do to it has consequences. Similarly, whatever we say or do has consequences. So whichever boat we find ourselves in, we need to look after it.
3. People laughed at Noah for spending so much time and effort in building his boat, but those that did ended up dead in the water. Closed minds lead to stagnation.
4. Noah was 600 years old when he built the Ark. He had kept himself fit and healthy and was up for the challenge. Do you look after your body by giving it good food and exercising regularly?
5. If you are going to do a job, do it well. Make sure you have a strong platform on which to build.
6. Don't listen to negative criticism,  Open-minded people will support you with positive suggestions - the last thing you want is negativity and nay-sayers around you.
7. For safety, get at least one other person on-side so you have a mutual support network. If at least one other person likes your idea, then surely more than one will.
8. Speed isn't always necessary. The Ark carried snails as well as cheetahs. Sometimes slow progress is more stable than fast growth. Look what happened to all those dotcom companies!
9. Remember to just float and enjoy the scenery. Stress is a negative emotion which leads to illness whereas relaxation and mindfulness allow the brain to make inciteful, appropriate decisions.
10. The Ark was built by amateurs who learnt as they went along. No-one is an expert in anything when they first start out - that doesn't mean to say that the project wont be successful.  The Titanic was built by professionals......
11. Be happy and stay positive. No matter how bad the storm, there will be a rainbow over the horizon.