Zebra with a mark - The odd one out (Short Story)

Today we are bringing you a story that was actually a real experiment that was conducted by scientists in Africa.

Have you wondered why Zebras have stripes? It’s definitely not a camouflage. Rather it makes Zebras stand out against the forest background. Then what’s its purpose?

As far as we know, nothing in nature is without a purpose. If you have been on a safari and observed a herd of Zebras, you will probably understand.

Try observing just one Zebra in the herd. Do you think it’s an easy task?

Scientists observing a particular Zebra in the herd found it impossible to do so. As soon as they looked elsewhere and then looked at the herd again, they were unable to locate that particular Zebra. It seems like it’s very easy to lose a particular Zebra in the herd.

So, what did those scientists do? They marked that Zebra with a red paint. It made it easier for them to study that Zebra, but it had a surprising side-effect. That Zebra was hunted down and eaten by lions.

Then the scientists decided to study another Zebra and so marked that one too. That Zebra was also killed by lions.

It happened invariably. Lions always targeted the Zebra with the mark. This is the danger of standing out from the crowd.

Lions always mark their prey and then attack it. But if all the animals in a herd look the same then it makes it harder for the lions. So, Zebras use their camouflage, not against the forest, but against their own herd. It helps them blend into the herd.

There are many stories and real-life experiments that suggest that standing out from a group is considered a huge risk, that people (and animals) try to avoid in general. You may have read/heard some of these before:

Slave mentality - Some people who are downtrodden and poor often develop a mentality that makes them feel immensely jealous of someone who emerges from them and becomes successful.
Crabs in a bucket - Whenever any crab tries to escape, others will pull it in.
Psychological phenomenon of Group-bias - A psychological experiment was conducted where three equal lines were shown to some people. People were sent one by one to the room with some of the experimenters masquerading as members of the study group. All experimenters said that the middle line was longer. This had a psychological impact on the people. Most of them agreed that the middle line was longer than the other two lines, which was not true. This is what is called as group-bias in psychology.

Now, what lessons can we draw from this story/experiment?

Lessons learnt from this Experiment

Our fear of looking different from others has roots in evolution. People/Animals who were different often got killed, or suffered immensely.

Anyone who wants to stand out from the rest, has to fight and overcome his or her primal fear of looking different from the rest.

Now, we do not have to face snakes and lions. But still many situations have the potential to invoke the same level of anxiety in us.

Stage Fright - Do you know what is considered the most prevalent fear in humans? It’s speaking in front of a crowd. Underlying cause is the same - fear of looking different from the crowd.
Are you afraid to speak out your mind? Probably because you are apprehensive that you will say something that people don’t agree with, or something that’s embarrassing. You will look as an eccentric person, someone who is odd - in the way he thinks, or the way he behaves.
Are you afraid of taking risks, doing something new in life? Many people cannot leave the rat race in their profession. They do not have the guts to follow their passion. Why? Because they think that if they fail, then they will be left out of the herd. They will be outcasted.

All these fears have the same root cause - fear of looking different from others.

However, unlike animals or our human ancestors, being different may be a good thing in modern era. We have plenty of examples to prove it.

Artists - You can’t be a successful painter, writer, filmmaker, musician etc, till you work from your heart and have a creative vision.
Entrepreneurs - The most important recipe to become a successful entrepreneur is to be recognize problems of the target customers and then providing them with an innovative solution. You have to think out of the box and do something that no one has done before.
Scientists and Philosophers - Human civilization could never have grown, if we never thought out of the box.

There are many more professions that require a lot of creativity. Human civilization needs people who are the odd one out, people who think and act different from the general masses.

But most creative people feel as the odd one out in society. If you have been reading this write-up till now, then there’s a high chance that you are one too. Have you always felt as an outsider, with people finding it hard to decipher you? It’s a scary state-of-being, isn’t it?

It’s easier to become a doctor or an engineer. But tell your parents that you want to be a blogger or start a business and you probably will be given long lectures on the risks involved - “the fear of getting killed by the lions”.

Most of us still prefer to stick with the herd, and enjoy the comfort that it provides. But more people nowadays, probably more than ever in human history, are pursuing their passion, making their own path in life. We call them risk takers.

This is what made us humans the most successful species on this planet - ability of some of us to overcome our evolutionary inbuilt fears.

Inculcate the habit of facing the lions, be comfortable in listening to your inner-voice and mind. Believe us, your life will change forever. We can’t promise that you will live a comfortable or happy life, but you will sure live a life of purpose.

Don’t let others in the herd dictate to you what you should think, speak, write or how you should behave. Don’t resent them, either. Many of them will try to advice you, maybe even bully you, so that you follow the rules of the herd. Probably that’s what they have learned - to fear the lions and snakes.

Don’t let anyone tell you what you can or cannot do. Take the risk and be strong enough to face the consequences. Maybe you will pave a new path for others to follow.

Let us know in the comment section your views on this. What is the most important lesson we can take away from it, as per you?