Stone Soup
Have you heard the children’s story Stone Soup?
If you’re curious to learn about the power of partnership, it’s a great read:
“Once upon a time, a wise old man decided to go on a journey. So he packed a small bag, said goodbye to his wife, and set off. He traveled all day without meeting anyone. When it was evening, he came to a small village. “I think I’ll stop here for the night,” he said to himself.
Near the center of the village, he met a group of people. So he introduced himself. “I’m a simple traveler,” he said, “looking for a safe place to sleep and a hot meal.”
“We’d be glad to offer you a place to sleep,” the villagers told him, “but we have very little food. Our crops were very poor this year, and there’s not much to eat in the whole village. Most of us are just barely getting by.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” the old man said. “But you needn’t worry about feeding me. I already have everything I need. In fact, I was thinking of making some stone soup to share with all of you.”
“Stone soup?” the villagers asked. “What’s that? We’ve never heard of stone soup.”
“Oh, it’s wonderful,” said the old man. “Best soup I’ve ever tasted. If you bring me a soup pot and some water, I’ll make some for all of us.”
And so the villagers rushed back to their homes. When they returned, one was carrying a large soup pot, another had wood for a fire, and others brought water.
When the fire was going and the water had begun to boil, the old man took out a small silk pouch. With great ceremony, he reached in and pulled out a smooth, round stone. He carefully dropped the stone into the boiling water. The villagers watched eagerly. The old man began to slowly stir the pot, sniffing the aroma and licking his lips in anticipation. “I do like a tasty stone soup,” he said. “Of course, stone soup with cabbage—now that’s really special.”
“I might be able to find a bit of cabbage,” one villager said. And off she went to her house, returning with a small cabbage she had stored away in her pantry. “Wonderful!” said the old man, as he added the cabbage to the pot. “This reminds me of the time I had stone soup with cabbage and a bit of salted beef. It was unbelievably good.”
After a moment of silence, the village butcher spoke up. “I know where there’s a bit of salted beef,” he said. And off he went to his shop to get it. When he returned, the old man added the beef to the soup pot and continued to stir.
“Can you imagine what this soup would taste like if we had a bit of onion…and perhaps a few potatoes…and a carrot or two…and some mushrooms. Oh, this would be a meal fit for royalty.”
And before he knew it, the soup pot was filled to the brim with vegetables of all kinds— carrots and potatoes, mushrooms and onions, turnips and green beans, beets and celery—all brought by the men and women and children of the village. Not only that, but the village baker came out with some fresh bread and butter.
And as the soup simmered slowly over the fire, the wonderful aroma began to waft over the villagers. And they began to relax and talk together, sharing songs and stories and jokes.
When the soup was finally done, the old man ladled it out into bowls, and they all shared a delicious meal together. There was more than enough for everyone to eat their fill. Afterward, they all declared that it was the best soup they had ever tasted. The mayor of the village pulled the old man aside, and quietly offered him a great deal of money for the magic stone, but the old man refused to sell it.
The next morning, he woke early and packed up his belongings. As he was leaving the village, he passed by a group of children playing at the side of the road. He handed the youngest one the silk pouch containing the stone, and he whispered, “It was not the stone that performed the magic. It was all of us together.”
There’s many conclusions and little gems of wisdom you can draw from this story, but for me the post powerful is what you can achieve with partnerships and collaboration.
In the story, the old man was able to create a delicious meal for the entire village by working together with the villagers, each contributing what they had to offer.
This same principle can be applied to entrepreneurs who are looking to start (or grow!) a business. By working with others and leveraging their skills and resources, entrepreneurs can achieve greater success than they could on their own.
When I launched my business in North America, I had no network or industry contacts.
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So I made a list of 50 influential people and did a short video reaching out to collaborate.
It led to a lot of conversations and a lot of great partnerships.
How do you make a partnership work?
The problem a lot of people experience is one side ends up feeling like they got more (or less) out of the relationship than the other.
This often happens when entrepreneurs have a referral agreement with each other, and one person ends up sending a lot of business, while the other doesn't get much in return.
A partnership works when it's built on the foundation of two key elements.
First, there's a good alignment of brand and values. Both parties need to feel comfortable and proud to promote each other's business to their network and have their customers work with each other.
Second, the partnership needs to be built on a foundation of fair exchange. If one party receives a lot more out of the relationship than the other, there needs to be a way to compensate for that to ensure that both parties feel like the laws of exchange are in balance.
It's important to be aware of any feelings of guilt or resentment in the relationship and neutralize them by balancing the laws of fair exchange.
Practically, this could mean actively doing more in order to find that happy medium. However, while balance is the goal, business doesn’t always shake out the way we want or hope for. If, at the end of the partnership, it didn't work out, as professionals both parties should accept reality and shake hands as friends and move on.
If you’ve entered the partnership in good faith, made every reasonable attempt to find the balance, and vice versa, a partnership not working out will not (and should not) necessarily mean the end of a good relationship.
What partnerships or collaborations haven been successful in your business? Share below! 👇
P.s.
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1moWe love Jon Muth’s rendition of ‘Stone Soup’ in our home! Thank you Mike for today’s webinar, and for taking my question! I know so many gifted, deeply caring people who are experts and can help so many and make such a big DENT in our world, but, like me, have found it difficult to articulate The Promise, the transformation, because, being healthy in full vitality comes second nature to us. Being able to clearly articulate it, especially in a sea of noise, is crucial. Thank you for bringing the soup stones today, and for inviting me and our wider community to engage, take part, and share the soup!