Shri Cloth Market Institute of Professional Studies, Indore

L = f ( f, g, w, s)
What is Leadership?
• Leadership has nothing to do with the title on your business card or the size of your office. Leadership is not about how much money you make or the clothes you wear. Leadership is a philosophy. It's an attitude. It’s a state of mind. And it's available to each one of us.
The perception of a leader!
• The sad fact is that most people see the worst in others - they see them through the eyes of their own anger, fear and limitation. If someone shows up late for a meeting, they impute a negative intent on that person, saying “they are so rude”. • If someone makes a mistake on an expense report, they grumble “that person is so dishonest”. If someone miss-communicates a point, they silently say “he's a liar”.
Leaders are different.
They look for the best in people.
“To be clear, leaders do not confront reality, the best leaders see through the eyes of understanding. “ – Robin Sharma
If someone is late, they try to get to the truth. Maybe there's a time management problem to coach around or a sick child to help. An error on an expense account could be the result of a poor process in place or the employee's disorganization. The miscommunication might be all about the person communicating having weak skills in this area. An opportunity for improvement.
 Today, rather than looking for the worst in people, one should look for what’s best within them.
 Sure some people really are inconsiderate or dishonest or uncaring. But in my experience - and I've worked with a lot of people over the years - most people are good says Robin Sharma
 Few human beings wake up in the morning and ask themselves: “What can I do today to mess up someone else's day or undermine my credibility?”
 Most of the mistakes people make are the result of a lack of awareness. And here's the payoff for you: as you seek out the good in people, not only will they want to show up more fully for you, but you will see more good in your world.
Transform yourselves
 Too many people believe that playing their best game as a human being requires them to revolutionalize their lives. And for most of us, that’s a scary thought.
No one wants to make massive changes to the way they think, feel and behave. Human beings love staying within the comfort zone. But guess what? Personal Transformation does not require you to completely change your lifestyle. Small changes can also transform your personality
The best way to get to your greatness is through small, continuous steps-what I call the “1% Wins”.
 If you improve your health only 1% each day for the next 30 days, you will see a 30% increase in that dimension of your life in only 1 month. Same for every other area of your life, from your relationships to your career.
Doesn't seem so scary now does it?
Can you make those little improvements in the areas most in need of improvement?
Simplify yourself! That’s the key to focus
Henry David Thoreau shouted “Simplify. Simplify. Simplify” in his breathtakingly good book “Walden”.
One of the primary reasons that people and organizations fail to get to greatness is that they try to be too many things to too many people. I'll use the Confucius quote I often use here:
“Man who chases two rabbits catches neither.”
The most successful human beings are wildly focused. They have a very clear picture of what it is they want to create by the time they reach the end of their lives and then they have the discipline (and courage) to stick to their mission – saying “no” to everything that is not mission critical.
Thus, to simplify your life. Strip away all that is unimportant – these are the things keeping you from getting to your dreams.
And then once you do your clean up, focus, focus, focus. You'll be surprised how good you will then get at being great.
Conversations with Eccentrics
Only leaders (and we all can Lead without Title) who are willing to think differently can out-innovate everyone around them. Thinking the same thoughts produces the same results. Leadership is all about being the Brave Creative out in front in your marketspace (and your career) versus doing things the way everyone else does them.
Business doesn't need more copycats. Business needs more Dreamers.
Apple came up with the gorgeous (and now ubiquitous iPod). Now there are so many products with the letter "i" in front of it I've lost track. Too much copying. Not enough leading.
A well-respected business leader told me about a CEO who did something that made me smile. He hired a young wonder kid fresh out of business school - a kid who was not only brilliant but thought differently and wasn't afraid to voice his eccentric thoughts. The mandate of the new hire? Sit on the company's management team and consistently challenge ideas that fostered the status quo. This man was paid to push the envelope. To evangelize innovation. To make things better by being unorthodox in a world where most of us are afraid to leave the crowd.
So have conversations with people who are Originals. Strive to leave the Safe Harbor of the Known. Make things better. Play bigger. Start Dreaming.
Listen first!
People ache for great listening. Do you give it to them?
That one of the single best things you can do to get your relationships (both professional and personal) to world-class is to become alarmingly good at listening.
Robin Sharma says “As a young lawyer, I worked with a senior litigator who was just "insanely great" (Steve Jobs term) at making people feel heard. It wasn't forced. It wasn't faked. It wasn't artificial. Just a truckload of masterful, heartfelt listening every time I was with him. And guess what, that was the best professional relationship I had at that office. I'd do anything for him. He had my respect. and my loyalty, and my outright friendship. Because I knew (versus believed) he cared.”
Listening like that seems like simple stuff, this listening business. But it’s outrageously hard in the real world.
People need listening. Crave it. Hunger for it. More than we can imagine
Oh the way it feels when someone gives you the listening you need. It’s so very rare isn't it? And yet so exceptionally powerful.
Get to your Next Level of Listening. Master that art. It'll rock your world.
No Try / No Win
Such a simple idea you can't win if you don't try. So often, we get a big idea. One that will get our careers to the next level. One that will get our lives to the next level. One that will really set us soaring.
But then guess what happens next? The voice of fear takes over.
We start selling ourselves on all the reasons why we'll fail. Eventually, that beautiful/big/bold idea seems silly/unattainable/foolish. And so we don't act. We don't even try.
Imagine Sachin Tendulkar or M S Dhoni wanting to win but not even playing the tournament. Imagine the great manager wanting to lead her team to world-class but not even showing up. Imagine the brave inventor wanting to change the world. Yet not even doing anything. Nothing happens until you move and you'll never win if you don't even try.
That one Leap
It's stunningly interesting to me how we have the power to - over the hours of this very day - make a decision/choice/commitment that can transform our professional as well as our personal lives forever.
This day can be the first day of your new life. The day that changes everything. The day you stopped playing small and stood up for the poetic possibilities your life was meant to be. I get excited just thinking about that seriously.
A simple question: What one leap could you make today - that if you made it - would change the game?
What one Bold Step could you take that would radically alter the way you think/feel/behave?
What New Move could you step into that would lift you into the realm of extraordinary – remarkable - world- class?
Now, today, why not take that step?
Success via Simplicity
The co-founder of Google recently said: "Success will come from simplicity."
Shou should really go deep into his words. They are very powerful.
Most people in business and within their personal lives move towards complexity.
More To Dos,
More projects,
More products,
More meetings,
More possessions,
More goals,
The best you can do is ‘move in the opposite direction.’
They try and make their business models leaner and more focused. They do fewer but smarter things. They get wildly focused and wonderfully lean and they most definitely run from trying to be all things to all people.
Because real genius lives in simplicity.
YOU FIND WHAT YOU SEEK
Every second you spend thinking about what you don't want in your life is a second denying focus and energy from getting what you do want. Every minute you worry about what's not working is a minute drawn away from creating what will work.
And every hour spent reflecting on the disappointments of the past is an hour stolen from seeing the possibilities that your future holds.
“What I've discovered in my own life is that I see more of what I look for. Clarity precedes mastery (big idea there) and the more clearly I look for what I want, the more powerfully I generate that result in my life.” Says Robin Sharma
By setting clear goals in the important areas, you can see more of what you’re searching for. By looking for the best in others, you will generally find it.
Leadership is all about clarity!
Karim Rashid a famed designer says "I think we should always be looking 15 minutes ahead."
Robin Sharma suggests “We should always be thinking 15 years ahead.”
Clarity precedes mastery and it's impossible to create an outcome/goal/result that you can't even see.
The most successful people know exactly what success means to them and what their mountains look like.
And each day, step by step, they steadily near that once-far destination.
You can too!
Be Grateful
Gratitude is a beautiful thing. Makes the recipient feel better. Makes the sender feel great.
You should appreciate your teammates who leave their homes each morning to help you and your organization.

You should thank all those who have believed in you and helped you along the way at any phase in life.
We all have a lot more blessings in our life than we know.
No matter how good - or bad - your life looks at this very moment, there really is so much (and so many people) you can be thankful for.
Never feed your weakness! Always overcome it
A simple insight for you today: every time you practice a weakness, you feed it. And the things you feed grow in your life.

Every time you don't live your values, The Integrity Gap widens.
Every time you run from a fear, the fear expands.
Every time you mistreat another person, your capacity to mistreat becomes more powerful.

We become excellent by doing excellent things. (over and over and over until they become a part of our wiring).
We become fearless by visiting the places that scare us.
We become strong by living our strengths. Not our weaknesses.
Fail to win
The very nature of dreaming big dreams and stretching yourself beyond the normal is dangerous.
Dangerous in the sense that you leave safety, you leave routine, you leave the common world where unhappy people smile giant smiles when they are asked to pose for a picture (feeling a little poetic on this hot summer's day).
And as you leave your cocoon of comfort, you will certainly fail more than your neighbors and those who live a life called Ordinary. But one must fail to win.
One must be willing to risk greatly to reach your personal mountaintop and your authentic definition of success.
Man would rather reach high and be disappointed than not even try to reach and when he falls, he gets back up, dusts himself off - and start again. Wiser, Stronger, and more committed. Just like you.
Never Stop Improving
Companies don't get better if they fall in love with their success. The best ones never feel they are truly successful. The brilliant ones know that they can always improve. Humility is part of their cultural DNA.
Same for human beings. The Great Ones are all about NSI (Never Stop Improving) They want to improve the way they think. The way they feel. The way they behave. The way they execute. The way they communicate. The way they live.
Here's a tool you can integrate into your work and personal life today.
Throughout your day, keep asking yourself: "How can I make this better?"
Apply it to your work. Apply it to your relationships. Apply it to your Self. As Robin Sharma wrote in his book The Greatness Guide "Small daily improvements over time lead to stunning results."
The act is to Lead
“The smallest of actions is always better than the noblest of intentions." Leadership is a lot more than just dreaming up big idea. It's about acting on them.
What separates the ordinary ones from The Great Ones is a simple fact: the best of the best execute brilliantly around their most vital priorities.
Leadership is, in so many ways, about getting good stuff done
So today, make a decision that will revolutionize your career/life/self Never leave the site of an opportunity
People who have achieved great success are not necessarily more skillful or intelligent than others. What separates them is their burning desire and thirst for knowledge. The more one knows, the more one achieves.”
~ Robin Sharma