The Rules of Acquisition: Now Discussing Rule 9

In Star Trek, the Ferengi are a society entirely based on greed and the acquisition of wealth. As part of that, their core beliefs are based on the Rules of Acquisition, a list of 285 rules to help good Ferengis become and remain wealthy.

I'd like to step through the Rules (as shown in "canon" Star Trek sources, i.e. the TV show only) and discuss each one (much like is currently done in Amp with monie lines, sequels, etc), both in the context of the show and in the context of business and life in general.

Thoughts?

Kimball Kinnison

 

[Bono]Sounds like western civilization[/Bono]

 

Quark genuinely hates giving any money away. He loves people, yes, but as a true Ferengi he can seperate the love of family members and friends and the need to acquire profit. A good Ferengi, to him, won't let emotion confuse and confuddle him into poor financial decisions. Rom is weak. He can be seduced by a kind gesture. He is prone to gift giving - tantamount to returning profit. In the episode 'Dogs of War' near the end of DS9's run, when Rom buys the bar off of Quark because Quark things he's going to become Nagus, Rom gives it back to Quark when he is given the title. Quark would never do that, infact he actively rallies against it.

So I think this rule is at number one because to abide by it you have to compartmentalise your affairs extremely well; you have to realise that profit ranks above any other consideration. If a Ferengi doesn't follow this rule, then they are open to all sorts of other manipulation.

 

Exactly. If you want to make money, you need to be able to hold on to it. Otherwise, they can come to expect a reduced rate, or even (shudder) free service.

Kimball Kinnison

 

Moving on to the next rule:

This one would seem obvious to any sane businessman.

Kimball Kinnison

 

Then that probably means there are some insane folks in Collecting (including me!) judging from some of the threads I have seen about how much people have spent for figures..

 

If I had the power to follow that rule I would have much more success.

By the way, Best thread idea ever.

 

Moving on, we reach rule 6. In this case, there are two different rules, from two different time periods. In Enterprise's time, there are only about 175 rules. Krem quotes the 6th Rule of Acquisition as:

However, almost 2 centuries later, Zek quotes the 6th Rule of Acquisition as:

In real life, this is a continuity error. However, in-universe, it is obvious that the Rules were reorganized and amended at least once in that time period.

Thoughts?

 

What happened to rules 4 and 5?

I'm not an expert in business nor am I much of a ST fan but I'd have to disagree with those two rules.

THe 2nd rule about the family, wouldn't it be better to keep family as an ally in case a deal turns south? If you screw them over for a chance to make profit you could be hurting yourself in the long run.

 

Moving on, the next rule is Rule 7:

This is one of the most critical pieces of business advice. If you aren't listening for opportunities, chances are you will never find them, let alone take advantage of them. Thoughts?

Kimball Kinnison

 

I like this one, as it applies to both Quark and Odo. Quark by his nature is always open to opportunities for profit, but by that very fact Odo also finds himself bound by it. When Ferengi's live off of Ferengenar then they carry this rule and practice with them too. They don't have the same respect for other cultures laws and will do anything to gain profit (Quark truly does consider himself a worthy and honourable Ferengi), and so the implications can be huge on their hosts... as Odo knows only too well.

 

Sorry I've missed a few days. I got a bit distracted at work. Next up:

This rule, in my opinion, is actually extremely profound. Opportunity does you no good if you lack the instinct to recognize the opportunity when it presents itself. At the same time, instinct alone cannot make you a profit without the opportunity to use that instinct (including access to the resources needed to use the opportunity).

Thoughts?

Kimball Kinnison