Their name synonymous with deadly sins in theology, sloths are infamous for their laziness and their inability to do any work quickly. Ever since they were first discovered, they have been sidelined as an unimportant animal. In fact, Georges Buffon, a French naturalist from the 18th century, wrote,
“Slowness, habitual pain, and stupidity are the results of this strange and bungled conformation. These sloths are the lowest form of existence. One more defect would have made their lives impossible.”
– Georges Buffon
Then how do these animals who have failed to earn any respect from the ever-wise humans can teach us anything valuable? It turns out, sloths are not only super good at adapting to their internal and external challenging, but they are also leaders of their ecosystem. “I don’t believe you,” is what I said when I first found out about these amazing creatures from Lucy Cooke, a zoologist who believes sloths to be her animal muse. When I had my biases against these amazing animals shaken up, I decided to share my knowledge with you.
So read on, and let’s see what we can learn from these utterly misunderstood creatures.
1. Convert weaknesses into strengths
Sloths are incredibly slow. Then how on earth they have been able to not only survive but thrive in a world full of high-speed predators and fast preys. The answer, they find safe places somewhere in a tree and then stay there feeding on stationary leaves.
Since they don’t move much, they don’t need a lot of energy. Thus, they convert their weakness of energy-deficient food by slowing down their metabolism (the process which converts food into energy). It can take up to 50 days for the food to pass through their digestive system.
“Sloths aren’t lazy. They are busy digesting.”
– Lucy Cooke
It teaches us always to be aware of our weaknesses. Once we confront these issues, we can translate them into unique strengths that allow us to thrive in challenging environments. Sloth tells us not to waste time in changing our personality. Instead, we need to realize our true potential and assess how best we can contribute to our and others’ success.
Take a look at my blog on answering the question, “Why you can’t be a leader?”
2. Act on opportunities
Opportunities are all around inside us. When speed becomes their enemy, sloths develop the ability to use trees for food, shelter, heat, safety, and movement. They eat leaves, branches, and flowers; and can rotate their necks up to 270 degrees so they can eat without moving.
They stay safe from land predators by not going down at all except to defecate. Even when leaves develop toxins to prevent animals from eating them, sloths increase their digestive process to allow their livers to take care of these harmful substances. They thrive in this environment because they act at every opportunity that fits their unique set of skills.
It’s a lesson for us that we always need to search for opportunities that best fit our needs. Trying to do what others can and we can’t; rarely works. Imagine a sloth trying to run away from a jaguar; yeah, it won’t work. Opportunities in this world can be endless, but if we run towards wrong options, they can easily become a threat for us.
3. Understand the threats
Sloths are well-aware of the threats in their environment. The harpy eagle is the ultimate predator in the thick canopy of jungle. One of the largest and most powerful birds in the world, a harpy eagle can pick up sloths, monkeys, and even baby deers in their giant claws. What’s more, they have highly developed sight, hearing, and can fly at a speed of 50 mph.
Sloths laugh at the face of this danger as they had adopted a unique advantage over their predators. They don’t bother to run for cover. Instead, they prefer the strategy of invisibility.
They move very slowly through the branches, mostly laying static in one place. Their slow movements allow them to remain hidden among the trees. Well, anyone can do that, so why is this trick unique? Imagine a gymnast who needs incredible strength to stay hanging in a crucifix position. While for sloths, who have a high fatigue resistance, this movement becomes so easy that it seems like gravity has turned off.
It teaches us that we need to recognize the threats and challenges in our environments and understand how our unique abilities can help us navigate these challenges. Most often, we look towards other people and try to mimic their strategies and tactics without consideration of our characters. Like the sloths, we need to celebrate our uniqueness and find out how distinctive abilities can help us succeed in the face of danger.
4. Create a Network of Friends
Sloths don’t thrive alone in the wild; they are living, walking ecosystems. They cultivate algae in their fur, which helps them blend among the trees, adding to their invisibility from predators. This algae also attract moth and other insects, which feed on and make the sloth fur their home. They add to the nutrient richness of algae, which, in turn, provides these nutrients to the sloths.
It shows us that by creating a network of friends and caring for them, sloths have been able to increase their chances of success in their environment. We humans also need to recognize the potential of cultivating friendships around us. A true leader is one who pays attention to the needs of others. Sloths teach us that this attitude towards others will eventually help us in return.
It turns out the animals who we believed to be “just one character away from extinction” can teach us so much about improving our life and leadership skills. Just like the sloth, lessons are all around us. It falls on us to take a moment to reflect on what’s going on in our lives and how we can learn from it.
Check out more on this idea of finding our place in life on thelostfootsteps.com or check out more related articles on my blog.