One of the questions often asked in my career is -“What style of leadership will make you a successful leader ?. The answer is simple. Lead by example as your followers follow what you do and not what you say. This is true in family, organisations or in society at large.

Let us understand how we can lead by example in a family setting. Many parents think that because of their age gap, children may listen to whatever they say. This may be true up to the age of 10 or so but thereafter as they turn an adolescent they tend to rebel and are not interested in following your boring advice day in and night out.

Let us keep it simple. If we want our kids to brush their teeth before they have their morning cup of milk, coffee or tea, we need to practise it. If we have a bed coffee without brushing our teeth in our bed and expect our children to brush their teeth before they have it, it may never happen.

If we work or play with our mobile while having our breakfast, our children may never eat breakfast without a mobile in hand. If we watch TV while having our food, they are likely to do the same. On the other hand, if we want them to be away from mobile while having food or while studying, we need to practise it before we preach.

Then while we are driving, if we speak on the mobile for work or otherwise, our children observe our actions and repeat the same when their turn comes. No lecture on road safety can be given to a child whose parents do not practise it on the road.

If we move to the organisation again, our actions will always speak louder than our words. If we want our team members to be punctual to work, we need to arrive before time and show them what we expect. If we want them to attend meetings on time, we need to start and end meetings on time. If we want them to respond to emails promptly, we have to first reply to all our emails instantly. If we expect impeccable behaviour with our colleagues, suppliers or customers , then the way we deal with these stakeholders, sets the role model for them.

Society is a mirror image of families and organisations as social units. We can expect citizens to be law abiding and dutiful ,if we practise it within our families and organisations. Even the politicians with high personal credibility will always be respected and regarded and not otherwise. Even if we look back at history, the leaders we admired are those who always led by example and not because of their oratory skills or execution skills alone.

Let us not complicate a simple subject like “Leadership”. We do not need books or lectures to understand leadership. It is as simple as “Learning by doing”. If we practise before we preach, we may never need to preach to anybody. One can recall teachers, managers and family members whom we adore. We admire them not because they ordered us what to do, but they always showed us what to do and how to do it and we happily followed them.

Let us lead by example from today.

S Ramesh Shankar

30th March 2023

 

Someone asked me “What is the difference between steps and footsteps ?“. I had no immediate answer but found it a good point to reflect on. All of us take steps in every stage of our lives. We study hard, work hard, take care of our family and society and always want to leave our imprints behind for the future generations.

While all of us take steps, not every imprint of our steps is followed. The ones which are followed by the next generation ,I may call footsteps. The difference between steps and footsteps is all about “Followership”.

How do we leave behind a legacy that generations after us ,want to follow us ? Our children do not follow us because we are their parents. We as students do not follow teachers because they taught us . Employees do not follow leaders because they were their bosses in their career.

Then what is the “X” factor in us ,which makes children, students, employees and even citizens follow us ,after we become past tense in our lives. In my view, it is this “X” factor which is difference between our steps and footsteps.

We can see in every walk of our lives ,that we have leaders who may be successful and very effective in whatever they do. It could be our own parents, teachers, friends, colleagues, sportspersons, politicians or corporate leaders. However, some we remember and follow while others fade away after their lifetime. What are the distinguishing factors between such leaders whom we remember and follow and others whom we forget ?

What are the qualities in human beings which makes people follow them during their lifetime and even after they are no more ,in human form ? Why do some people become role models for others and some do not quality for this title ?

The first quality which people look for ,in their role model ,is their behaviour. While excellence in whatever we do ,is considered a pre-requisite for being followed by others, it is our behaviour, which outlives our lifetime. People may forget what you taught them in life but never forget how you treated them.

The second quality which people want to follow is groundedness and humility. The people who excel in whatever they do, are always grounded and feel that their journey of excellence never ends in their lifetime. They always have their feet on the ground and are unassuming by nature.

The third quality of leaders in different walks of life, whose footsteps all of us want to follow ,is their selflessness. They live for others and are always willing to share all they know ,with everyone who could benefit from it. This makes followers fall in a bee line for such leaders.

So, in my book, the difference between “Steps” & “Footsteps” is “Followership”. The qualities which distinguishes whom we may follow or not ,are their impeccable behaviour, their humility/groundedness and their selflessness.

Let us try to leave footsteps rather then our steps behind us.

S Ramesh Shankar

23rd January 2023

World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as “a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity (illness).” WHO defines wellness as “the optimal state of health of individuals and groups,” and wellness is expressed as “a positive approach to living.”  After having worked in the corporate world for more than four decades I have experienced the same and cannot agree more , to this concept of the WHO.

If we look back at industry, we realise that organisations primarily focussed on physical health of their employees.  This was starting with pre-employment checks, routine medical check ups ,to maintain good physical health and ensure employees are able to give their best in their roles, within the organisation.  This was also stipulated by labour legislations, which mandates periodic medical check ups for certain roles.

However, as organisations became more pragmatic and grew beyond the narrow lanes of what labour legislations mandates, they started looking at employee wellness in a more holistic manner. Many progressive organisations in India and outside employed counsellors and other healthcare professionals to support employee wellness.  They realised that employee wellness was an optimal state of health of individuals and groups , as the WHO has proclaimed.

As a next step, organisations realised that employee is an integral part of the family as a social institution and hence we need to care not only for the employee but for the family as a whole.  This led to periodic medical check ups of spouses and other family members.  Many leading organisations also tied up with external wellness organisations to provide support to employees and their family members to tide over physical, mental, emotional and social stress through professional help.

The pandemic has helped organisations and individuals to realise that apart from physical and mental health, emotional and social health are critical for the well being of the employee.  This has led to organisations moving beyond their boundaries and providing support for employees, family members and communities ,for overall well being.

I personally realised during the pandemic and thereafter, the value of emotional support to the vulnerable  individuals and groups.  I volunteered for a support group called “the goodwill tribe” and wrote “letters of love” to help individuals to tide over emotional distress in different forms.  This was not only an awakening for me ,but made me realise the value of emotional anchoring as a role for managers and team leaders in organisations.

It is now the time to realise that employee well being is much beyond employee wellnesss.  All of us and especially team leaders and managers have to evolve as “emotional anchors” to employees , as their health is beyond physical and they need emotional, psychological and social support in different forms ,to survive and grow.

This concept of well being beyond wellness ,has to applied by individuals and groups within families, in the communities they live and society at large.  After all, we never know who is in distress , when and what type of support individuals or groups need at any time.

Let us together resolve to work on overall well being of society from today.

S Ramesh Shankar

7th July 2022