Creating, developing, and maintaining a business enterprise is akin to planting a seed and caring for it until it flourishes into a mature organism that can successfully reproduce and maintain itself through generations, fulfilling essential functions for survival and well-being.

A seed holds the promise of developing into a new independent organism that can endlessly ramify to ensure a healthy and thriving ecosystem. In a neat little package, a seed holds an essential unit of life complete with the genetic information and much of the energy required to germinate and flourish. It is as powerful as it is fragile, for only under the optimal conditions will it fulfill its life-giving promise.

The most critical phase in the germination of a seed is hydration, a process through which water penetrates the interior of the seed. Hydration triggers the essential metabolic processes for the plant’s growth stages. This moment is decisive: too little water allows for fungi to attack and prevent the seed’s germination.  Excess water prevents oxygen from adequately reaching the seed and the embryo is irreparably damaged. In addition to the optimal water input, adequate temperature and light are two other essential conditions for successful germination.

The second phase of the process is germination as such, where the internal metabolism of the seed is activated and results in the transformation of reserve macromolecules (carbohydrates, lipids and proteins) into soluble molecules hydrolyzed by enzymes that are simpler and more accessible to the embryo. The last stage of the process includes the development of the radicle (root) and is characterized by increased respiratory activity and water absorption.

These first two phases allow for a halt in development, with the seed capable of pausing to wait for optimal conditions for germination.  But once the radicle sprouts, the organism enters an irreversible phase, vulnerable to inadequate hydration and poor light conditions.  The seedling’s development is indeed a complex process entailing a very high energy expenditure that is satisfied by the seed’s nutritional reserves.  Despite the challenges, once the right conditions are met, nothing stops its sustained growth into maturity…Enbot (hebrew word = to germinate).