Learn management from watching ducks: The management logic hidden in scenarios
1. Clap your hands once to wake up the neglected legs
The old squire in Tongzhou, Beijing loves to eat roast ducks. He specially spent ten taels of silver to invite a "Roast Duck Master". The master's ancestors for three generations were royal chefs in the imperial palace. The roasted ducks have crispy skin and tender meat, and even the duck bones are soaked in the flavor of sauce. At first, every roast duck served on the table had "two legs intact". The squire would praise to everyone, "The ducks in my place are even more delicious than those in the imperial palace." However, half a month later, something strange happened. For three consecutive days, each roast duck only had one leg left. It seemed that the other leg had been "stolen", and there were still unshaven down feathers at the cut of the duck body.
The's (Note: "" is a special title in ancient Chinese, and there isn't a precise English equivalent, can be translated as "gentleman of a rich family" or something similar according to context, here just use Chinese for a literal translation) face turned from red to black. On the first day, he thought it was because the chef "had a shaky hand" and accidentally missed cutting one. On the second day, he sent the steward to keep an eye on the kitchen. As a result, the steward came back and stammered, saying, "The chef didn't hide the leg." On the third day, he rushed into the backyard holding half a roast duck, grabbed the chef's sleeve and shouted, "Let me have a look! Does this duck only have one leg?"
The master was in no hurry. Pointing at the ducks under the pagoda tree, he said, "My lord, look. The sun is scorching hot. The ducks are all standing on one leg to rest. Don't they look like 'one-legged ducks'?" The lord was so angry that he picked up a clod of earth and threw it on the ground. With a "pop", the ducks squawked and scattered in a panic. Each of them started to run on two legs and dove into the reed thicket. The lord pointed at the ducks with a trembling voice, "Look! Don't they have two legs?" The master smiled and bowed with cupped hands, "If you had made such a noise earlier, you wouldn't have had to eat one-legged duck. The ducks were frightened, so they were willing to use two legs. If you give a 'pat' to the kitchen helpers – for example, praise them by saying, 'The duck skin today is so crispy and tastes better than yesterday', or reward them with two qian of silver to buy wine, would they not keep both legs for you?"
In management, this principle is called "the power of immediate recognition". I've seen too many managers who regard "incentives" as "year - end bonuses". When employees stay up late to revise a proposal three times, they only say "Thanks for your hard work"; when employees handle a difficult client, they only say "Good job". However, "Thanks for your hard work" is not as good as "You broke down the 'delayed delivery' problem mentioned by the client into three solutions. This thinking is really great"; "Good job" is not as good as "Just now when you were communicating with the client, you replaced 'loss' with 'compensation'. I have to write this trick down."
Just like the "clapping" of the boss, recognition should "hit the right spot": it's not general praise but specific to "a certain thing or a certain behavior"; it's not "settling accounts at the end of the year" but "responding right away". Employees will remember that "someone notices what I do" - just like a duck that starts to run on its two legs only after being clapped at.
2. The leading duck is not elected; it emerges through actions
When Huang Jijun of SYM Group was starting his business back then, he often squatted on the ridges of the fields in his hometown watching the ducks. He said, "When the ducks want to cross a ditch in the fields, the first one to jump down isn't the one I caught. Instead, it's the one that comes to the ditch on its own and stretches its neck to test the depth. When the ducks go to find insects in the paddy fields, the one at the front isn't the one I put there. It's the one that first smells the fragrance of the rice leaves. If you force a duck that's hiding at the back to take the lead, it will just stand by the ditch and quack. The other ducks will either find a detour or huddle together and fall into the ditch."
I once conducted a team diagnosis for a machinery manufacturing enterprise. The production department manager is the boss's nephew. In terms of seniority, he has worked in the company for eight years. In terms of ability, he can't even operate the newly introduced CNC equipment. So, what happened? The old workers in the workshop refused to follow his arrangements ("He doesn't even know how to operate the machine tool. Why should he manage us?"). The new employees couldn't learn anything from him ("He only says 'Follow the process' and mumbles when asked about details."). Five technical backbones left within three months. The boss later sighed, "I thought 'relatives are reliable', but unexpectedly, it's 'those who can lead the team' that are reliable."
The "authority" of the leading duck is never bestowed by "position" but earned through "action":
- When a flock of ducks is going to cross a river, the leading duck has to go first to find out how deep the water is and whether the current is swift.
- When a flock of ducks is looking for food, the leading duck has to peck at the rice leaves first to confirm where the insects are hiding.
- When a flock of ducks encounters a fox, the leading duck has to flap its wings first to distract the fox and let the other ducks run away.
The same goes for enterprises when selecting cadres: it's not about "who has the longest service" or "who is closest to the boss", but "who takes the first step forward". For example, when a project gets stuck, the person who voluntarily stays up late to find a solution; when the team has an argument, the person who steps forward first to mediate and come up with a plan; when facing difficulties, the person who rushes forward first to take on the responsibility.
Just like the leading duck in a flock of ducks - it doesn't need to be "appointed" because it has already "taken the lead".
3. Wild ducks shouldn't be "fed" too fat, otherwise they will forget how to fly
There was a photographer who loved taking pictures of migratory birds. Every October, he would go to Gaoyou Lake in Jiangsu to watch the wild ducks flying south. In the first year, he brought half a bag of millet. The wild ducks first circled warily, then came over to eat. After finishing, they flapped their wings and flew up. They flew a few hundred meters and then came back. In the second year, he brought a basket of wheat. The wild ducks surrounded him as soon as they saw him. After eating, they didn't fly far but just rested in the reeds by the lake. In the third year, he brought a sack of corn. The wild ducks didn't even flap their wings. They squatted at his feet and scrambled for food. They were so fat that they couldn't even tuck in their necks. In the fourth year, when he went there again, the wild ducks by the lake had all become "domestic ducks". They would come over to ask for food when they saw people and didn't even look up when they heard the calls of the wild geese in the sky. They had forgotten that they could originally fly thousands of kilometers to the south.
The "wild ducks" in an enterprise are those employees who love to get bogged down in minor details and ask "strange questions".
- The product manager always asks, "Why do we put the button on the right? Can we try putting it on the left?"
- Programmers always wonder, "Can we use a more memory - efficient algorithm?"
- The operation staff always say, "Can we try promoting our products on Xiaohongshu?"
These people are like wild ducks that have never been fed, full of the courage to "take flight". However, many enterprises insist on being the "duck feeders".
- Use "Follow the process" to fend off their strange questions.
- Suppress their innovation plan with the slogan "Stability is of utmost importance."
- Use the saying The more you do, the more mistakes you will make to wear down their enterprising spirit.
So, what happened? The "wild duck" turned into a "domestic duck" — no longer wanting to ask questions or try new methods.
I know a CEO of an internet company. He set a "wild duck rule" for the technology department: Spend 10% of the time each month on "unrelated" projects. For example, programmers working on e-commerce can research "writing product copy with AI", and employees in operations can try "promoting the corporate account on Bilibili". He said, "The 'wildness' of wild ducks is for forging new paths. You can't keep them by the lake with millet. You have to let them fly out. Even if they fly in the wrong direction, it's better than staying by the lake eating millet."
4. A duck good at five events won't survive the winter
The lion king in the forest is going to hold an "All-round Sports Meeting". The events are jumping, running, flying, swimming and diving - every animal has to compete in five events. The rabbit outran all the other animals. However, when it came to the swimming event, as soon as it jumped into the river, it flapped about and shouted for help. The fish swam faster than anyone else, but in the running event, it could only wriggle around on the ground. The eagle flew the highest, but in the diving event, as soon as it dived into the water, it flapped its wings and flew up.
Only ducks can jump over the ridges in the fields, run fast enough to catch up with slow rabbits, fly several hundred meters, swim across the pond, and dive into the water to catch small fish. As a result, the duck won the all - around championship. Standing on the podium, it flapped its wings, but all the animals in the audience were laughing: "It can't run as fast as rabbits, fly as high as eagles, swim as well as fish, or dive as well as shrimps. What's the use of winning a championship?"
Sure enough, winter has come:
- The fox broke into the forest. The duck wanted to run away, but it couldn't run as fast as the rabbit. It was chased by the fox and hid in the reeds.
- The eagle swoops down from the sky. The duck wants to fly, but it can't fly as well as the eagle, so it has to dive into the water.
- After the fox left, the duck wanted to catch fish, but it couldn't dive deeper than the shrimp, so it could only eat the duckweed on the water surface.
Seeing this, the Lion King sighed and said, "You can do everything, but you're not proficient in anything. When in danger, none of your skills can save your life."
An enterprise's "jack-of-all-trades syndrome" is more fatal than that of a duck. I've seen a household appliance enterprise. It was originally doing well in making air conditioners. Later, when it saw the real estate market booming, it went into building houses; when it saw the mobile phone market booming, it started making mobile phones; when it saw the e-commerce market booming, it opened an online store. So, what was the result?
- The R & D funds for air conditioners were diverted to build houses, and the energy consumption of new products is 20% higher than that of competitors.
- The quality of the mobile phones is inferior to that of professional manufacturers, and the return rate for repairs is three times higher than that of peers.
- The operation of the online store is not as good as that of e-commerce companies, and its traffic is only one-fifth of that of its competitors.
After three years, the profit dropped by half, and all the original old customers went to the competitors.
Looking at Sony from the other side —— back then, it made the Walkman not because it could make all kinds of electronic products, but because it took "portable music" to the extreme; it made the PS not because it could make all game consoles, but because it took "gaming experience" to the top. The boss of Sony said, "The success of an enterprise is not about 'what I can do', but about 'what I can do that others can't'."
Just as a rabbit doesn't need to know how to swim; it just needs to outrun the fox. An eagle doesn't need to know how to dive; it just needs to fly higher than other birds. A business doesn't need to be a "pentathlete"; as long as it does "one thing" to "perfection", it can survive the winter.
Stories are more effective than grand principles because they carry a "temperature"
In these duck stories, whether they are true or false doesn't matter. What matters is that they "package" management concepts into scenarios.
Instead of telling an employee to "motivate subordinates", it's better to tell him "Why does the roast duck of the (a title in ancient times) only have one leg?"
Instead of telling the employees, "Choose the right cadres," it's better to tell them, "How did the leading duck on the ridge of the paddy field come about?"
Instead of telling an employee "You should keep innovating", it's better to say to him "A fat wild duck can no longer fly."
Rather than telling an employee to "focus on the core," it's better to tell them that "a jack-of-all-trades duck won't survive the winter."
Why? Because general principles are abstract while stories are concrete. Employees can recall the image of the master clapping his hands and shouting, Look! Two legs! They can remember the leading duck jumping across the ditch on the ridge, the wild duck by the lake that was too fat to fly, and the duck in the forest that won the all - around championship but hid from the fox. These scenarios can penetrate employees' minds more effectively than motivation theories and leadership models.
I once met a restaurant owner who posted the story of the "leading duck" in the staff lounge. The photo showed a flock of ducks crossing a ditch, with the words "Whoever jumps down first becomes the leader" written below. So, what happened?
- When a guest complains about the slow service of the dishes, the waiter/waitress will voluntarily say, "I'll go to the kitchen to hurry them up and bring you a fruit platter."
- When there is a guest having a birthday, the waiter/waitress will take the initiative to get candles and sing the birthday song.
- When a guest loses their wallet, the waiter will actively help to look for it and even send the wallet to the guest's home.
In less than half a year, the number of repeat customers in the restaurant increased by 30% because the employees learned to "be the leading duck".
Management is not about "telling grand theories" but about "telling small stories".
Just like the story of ducks—there's no need to talk about "motivation theories" or "leadership models." Just say things like "Clap your hands, and the duck will have two legs," "The leading duck emerges through action," "Don't fatten the wild ducks too much," "Being a jack - of - all - trades is not as good as excelling in one area." After hearing these, employees will nod and say, "Oh, so that's how it is."
When employees have these stories firmly in mind, the team will have a "herd effect":
The leading duck jumps down, and the other ducks follow suit.
One duck goes into the river, and the other ducks follow it into the river.
This is the power of stories—instead of "forcing a duck onto a perch", it's "making the duck want to go into the river on its own".