Article by Charles Handy on the common characteristics and experiences shared by fleas, or alchemists, in organizations. Handy identifies three major characteristics that define alchemists, namely, their dedication, their sense of difference and determination, and their doggedness. They are individuals more interested in the fulfillment of their idea than monetary gain, and he notes that they are the fleas that live outside of organizations. He then reveals that they all benefitted from "second-child syndrome" and were given a "golden seed" of confidence in their formative years. Handy proceeds to describe them as indifferent to traditional schooling - although they may have been high achievers - and as dreamers who think more in the short-term, setting out proactively to make those dreams a reality. Handy concludes the article stating that these fleas, or alchemists, should be encouraged in society to take risks for the betterment of the whole.
Handy, Charles B Entrepreneurship-Periodicals Handy, Elizabeth Entrepreneurs Entrepreneurship
Source
Article by Charles Handy on common characteristics and experiences shared by fleas, or alchemists, in organizations, 1999; Charles Handy Papers; Box 15, Folder 5; 3 pages
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