Sunday 3 June 2018

Lessons in Leadership - Stories from Mahabharata

By Ashwini Chube
Do you know- Arjuna’s Chariot bursts into flames at the conclusion of the war?

After the war was over Sri Krishna asked Arjuna to take down the Gandiva(his bow) and get off from the Chariot, as this is for his good only. Arjuna did as he was directed. After this lord Sri Krishna abandoned the reins of the horses and dismounted himself from the chariot as well. After Sri Krishna had dismounted from that chariot, lord Hanuman that topped the mantle of Arjuna’s vehicle, disappeared there and then. The top of the vehicle, which had before been burnt by Drona and Karna with their celestial weapons, the chariot with its quick pairs of steeds, yoke, and shaft, fell down, and reduced to ashes. Arjuna was amazed with this sight and with folded hands he asked Sri Krishna on why the chariot has been consumed by fire.
Sri Krishna said that the chariot was consumed by diverse kinds of weapons. It was because He had sat upon it during battle that it did not fall into pieces, previously consumed by the energy of brahmastra, it has been reduced to ashes upon his abandoning it.The Chariot was saved only because of the presence and grace of Sri Krishna.

Have you ever had a leader, a boss or a mentor who actually shielded you or guided you? Or are you the boss who takes care of their staff  and guides them on their professional journey? 
A leader is someone who guides the team, trains them, takes them on the right path, shows the way and shields the team. This is a very profound term.Here by shielding what I mean to say is standing by the team and thinking about the employees rather than himself.

In the 2008 crisis when the american investment bank Morgan Stanley was saved by 1 decision of the then CEO - John Mack  thus his name being engraved in history creating strong footprints in the hearts of every employee ( including me ofcourse - as I was a part of the esteemed bank then).
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Japan's largest bank, invested $9 billion in Morgan Stanley on September 29, 2008 and Morgan Stanley was saved under the leadership of John Mack. Thus many employees could have lost their jobs if hadnt been a strategic decision of Mack to involve Mitsubishi in the deal.This is a classic example of thinking at  a big picture level

This represented the single largest physical check signed, delivered and cashed. Concerns over the completion of the Mitsubishi deal during the October 2008 stock market volatility caused a dramatic fall in Morgan Stanley's stock price It recovered once Mitsubishi UFJ's 21% stake in Morgan Stanley was completed on October 14, 2008

 A Leader is the one who creates more leaders..who isnt insecure of others success
A leader shows you the way and warns you against potential dangers


Have you ever met such leader?


Ashwini Chube
Unicorn Insight


Disclaimer :All the opinions and thoughts expressed belong to the writer including case studies and are her own.The author isnt advertising about companies mentioned or persons mentioned and and all examples are just for motivation and as for study purpose and not otherwise. 

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