My Tryst with Leadership
Leadership has fascinated me ever since I got into college and was a part of Umang 2001 ... the third year of Umang to be precise.I was Star Wars assistant then. A 16 year old Umangite who was in awe of everything that i saw... the magnitude, the hierarchy, the hype, the hysteria ... Umang.
What fascinated me even more was the Chairperson of Umang'01 - Rishi Raj Singh Pruthi. He was a thin, frail Sardar who would walk up and down the corridors of N.M. College - seemingly insignificant. On 2nd August'01 he enters F.Y.J.C - H... the class starts clapping - kids tht we were ( t'was good fun though ). His first statement was : Last bench can you hear me ?
I showed him a thumbs up ... he started ... and how !
He spoke for a non-stop fifteen minutes and the class din't utter a word. Spell-bound, dumb-struck, in awe, gaping ... we used a million adjectives to describe the Mon. I then went on to become the Star Wars assistant... I remember my first and only General Meet in Umang'01 ( Assistants were allowed to sit for General Meets then ). It was room no. 14 ... a crowded room with frustrated faces, drooping shoulders and tired eyes. Most assistants gave a damn to Rishi Raj Singh Pruthi... i wasn't one of them. This General Meet has been a very strong foundation in my Leadership Career ( sounds cool..dun't it ? )
The Power of communication is the biggest lesson that came to me in my quest for leadership ... On that day ( approx. 17th Aug '01) Rishi Raj Singh ensured 200 assistants future Umangites ... wannabe HOD's, wannabe VCP's and CP's. I was to top the list. I recollect my ChairPerson speeches in front of the mirror ... the body language, the passion, the energy ... the high,
the adrenaline rush ... the intoxication..
JANUARY 10th'06 : Leadership is crazy. There is no easy formula for being a leader. If only! Leadership is challengin - all those balancing acts, all the responsibilty, all that pressure.
And yet good leadership happens- and it comes in all kinds of packages. There are quiet leaders and bombastic ones. There are analytical leaders and more impulsive ones. Some are tough as nails with their teams, some more nurturing. On the surface you would be hard-pressed to say what qualities these leaders share. Underneath, you would see that the best care passionately about their people- about their growth and success.and you would see that they themselves are comfortable in their own skins.
They're real, filled with candor and integrity, optimism and humanity.
I often questtion if leaders are born or made. The answer i guess is they're more made than born ... the quest and desire to lead often gives birth to leaders.Leading is more about trying something out-of-the-box, getting it wrong and learning from
it, or getting it right and gaining the self-confidence to do it again, only better.
For most of us, leadership happens one day when you become the boss and the rules change.
Before, your job was about yourself.
Now, it's about them.
Aarambh Hai Prachand
2 years ago
I think there is also a second kind of leadership that you dont mention. One that is carried on from a totally selfish perspective. The only objective the leader has is his own gain. At the same time, he realizes that he cannot go too far if the people below him are also not very well trained and equipped, and that is the only motivation for him to improve the people he is leading. I am not saying that this is a good style of leadership, but it is often as effective and popular.
ReplyDeleteI like your post. Your story about the Umang chief's effect on you shows the influence people can have on other people. I am reminded of the time me, Vishal and Saket stopped by Amitabh Bachchan's house one Sunday evening. The moment he stepped out of his gates, we seemed to be hit by this force, which felt extremely uplifting. Neither of us managed to get more than a second's glance of him, but each left enriched with the experience of being in the vicinity of greatness. You know that you have achieved all you could in life if you can influence three teenagers so strongly by your mere presence.
Hi Anuj... Its a nice post. This is Rishi here about whom you have written. Never thought I could lead a team. A leader is as good as his team. Just believed in one simple thing " Be a good human, you'll be a good leader." As a leader 2 things mattered most: 1. patience & understanding that all fingers are not the same - people take their own time to reach to certain wavelenghths and they will always differ from person to person. 2. roleplay - sometimes one needs to be a follower. A leader may not know all - he needs to keep gaining. He may not provide energy, he may need to harness it. Good Luck. Have read other blogs of yours. You are doing a good job.
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