During the buying season the ranchers come in heavy, boots in the dust, money loose in their hands. They crowd the ring and bid hard. The prize cattle move through the light, sleek-backed, heads high, each one turned to catch the eye of a man who might take it into a better pasture. Voices carry. The auctioneer calls. The good stock goes early.
One animal stands off from the rest. Not the largest. Not the strongest. But there is a look to him. He waits, wily.
When the market empties and the noise dies down he remains in the pen, muzzle to the rail, nosing the boards. He does not press himself forward. He does not need to be taken. Still, he does not leave. Days pass. The best laid plans or mice and men. Deals sour. Papers fail to clear. A rancher comes back with a gap in his herd and not enough time to fill it.
He walks the ring again. What is left is much diminished. Old animals with their years on them. Young ones not yet broken. A few that carry some strangeness. Some with the stain of muddled papers. Then he sees the one by the fence.
The papers are in order. The animal stands well enough. Keeps his distance some. But sound. The rancher needs stock. He makes the purchase.
Out on the land the animal settles. Finds his place among the others. Not remarkable. Not a creature to boast of. But steady. He feeds. Seasons turn. He stays. And in the staying he grows thick through the flank and easy in the pasture.
i.e - If you are able to support yourself via independent means, waiting until late in the hiring season is a viable strategy. Peak hiring season is a thick market - lots of quality buyers but lots of competition. Late cycle, the market thins. Fewer good jobs but also a weaker candidate pool. If you get lucky you can jump up a tier using this strategy. And then, becuase of the incuembency bias, once you are in, you stay and extract value.
Discuss
(WON'T SOMEBODY PLEASE THINK OF THE CHILDREN!)