An elderly woman used two pots to fetch water, each hung on the ends of a pole. One pot was perfect and delivered full portion of water while the other had a leaking crack. The imperfect pot felt very ashamed and this went on for a year. One day, the woman told the cracked pot, […]
Companies spend considerable amount of time and money on developing leaders through training programs and workshops. My experience so far suggests that these time-bound and finite interventions fail over a long run in developing leadership capabilities. I have attended a number of such training programs and workshops and have observed the impact of these interventions. […]
A novice painter once put his first painting at a busy cross road for people to mark mistakes. End of the day, the painting was full of cross marks! Next day, he made the same painting and displayed at the same cross roads. This time, he kept colors and brush there and requested people to […]
We are living in a world of attention deficit where no one has the time to listen. From what I have observed, organizations suffer from a listening crisis. Everyone has the answers and everybody wants to tell their story. No one is patient enough to sit back, ask questions and then really listen. This calls […]
In that leadership workshop, the trainer and the participants were discussing about the importance of humility in life and leadership. Some people defined humility as ‘modesty’ while others said it was about ‘seeing the self as a means to an end and not an end in itself.’ After listening carefully, the trainer said, “Humility is […]
The cricket coach had some wise words for his team. This team was reeling under pressure to perform and was marred by penalties imposed on key players due to their overly aggressive behavior on the field. Coach knew that some course correction was required. “Aggression” he said, “is a double edged sword. If used correctly, […]
It was the first day of his job as a consultant with this large consulting house. The consultant entered the office and walked across the corridor confidently, armed with his knowledge about methodologies, tools and best practices. In next few weeks of his induction, the challenge was to apply his knowledge on several simulated situations […]
When it comes to playing table tennis (ping pong), I like hitting hard smacks. But in this particular game, the opponents were playing defensively. The first few times I tried smacking the ball, I lost the points. Just then, my doubles partner whispered something in my ears, “Reciprocate your game. Don’t just play your style, […]
Alfred Nobel once read his own obituary that described him as a “Merchant of Death”. When Nobel’s brother died, a newspaper reported Nobel’s death by mistake. Because Nobel had invented dynamite, the obituary described him as someone who found ways to kill more people faster. “Is this how I really want to be remembered?” he […]