***The Monkeys, The Banana and The Fire-hose Analogy***
There was an experiment conducted in the 50's with four monkeys. They were all locked inside of a cage. Ralph, George, Henry and Bob. Near the end of the cage was placed a ramp with a rope, at the top of the ramp was placed a banana.
When they all saw it they all rushed at once to climb the rope, fighting, kicking and screeching. Ralph was the first to make it half-way up the rope, at which point he was sprayed back down by a man just outside the cage with ice cold water from a fire hose. Then he sprayed the other three too as punishment.
After all four were sprayed. George attempted to go next, he climbed almost 2/3's of the way up before he was sprayed off by the same man outside the cage. Then as reciprocation the other three were sprayed yet again for George's endeavor.
Henry and Bob both hesitated knowing they would be sprayed yet again even twice by the man outside the cage, but alas they both fought to go next, Henry being big, able and pretty smart got almost to the top when he was sprayed off by the man.
Then as the other three expected they received the same punishment.
Bob looked on at the man outside the cage, hesitant seeing that Ralph, George and Henry no longer wanted to climb the rope, he was unsure whether the banana would even be worth getting sprayed.
Whether out of dumb ambition or pure illogical persistence, he went for it and was sprayed off the instant he got on the rope. Then the man sprayed all four of them with double the amount of ice cold water.
Now all four of them looked on at the man outside the cage soaking wet, their heads down, and at the banana, not having experienced what it would have been like to have it, they moved on to the other side of the cage and went to sleep.
The man then took Ralph out and introduced a new monkey a few weeks later to the group. The monkey's name was Charles, Charles having no idea of what took place prior to his arrival saw the banana and saw the group lulling in the corner of the cage and thought "Why aren't these idiots going for the banana?"
Immediately he dashed to climb the rope. Almost instinctly the group of monkeys ran over to him screaming and yelling and beating their chests, almost half-way up the rope they pulled him off and beat him up.
The monkey shocked and blissfully bewildered got the message, no climbing the rope banana or no banana, no questions we're asked.
Then the man outside the cage repeated it again a week later, replacing George with a new monkey David, and the events would repeat itself yet again.
And so on and so forth until all the monkeys were replaced. Now none of them would climb the rope to get the banana but none of them knew why.
Then a 5th monkey was introduced almost a year later since the experiment started. He attempted to climb and was taken down and brutally beaten by the other 4 monkeys, when the new monkey asked them why, none of them had an answer, none of them knew why, they looked at each other and shrugged "That's the way we always do things around here :/"
The guy who first sprayed the fire-hose was long gone, the new guy outside the cage had no idea why the monkeys would not get the banana or why the other monkeys were beating up the new monkeys who tried to get it, none of the monkeys themselves knew why they were required to beat up new monkeys who attempted to get the banana, the whole reasoning behind the entire shindig had been long lost.
Don’t just beat up the new monkey – whether it is a new employee, a recent acquisition or a partner; their questioning of “The way we do things round here” may actually be a valid one.
Whenever in a new situation or environment always try to figure out what is the banana, who is the fire hose, and what is the collective thinking of the people in that element.
Always question authority if the situation calls for it while everyone is taking a blind-eye.
The Military is ripe with this type of situation, unfortunately it is the one entity that will never change no matter what.
Also it is wise to note a lot of penny scams are run the same way, old management is replaced by new management who is still being lead by old management behind closed curtains. $MDIN is a good example of that.
Happy trading and GLTA.
