India has been witnessing a mushrooming growth of business schools for the last 10 years. All these business schools promise to create world class leaders. But not all are successful. What may be the reasons? Well, frankly speaking, only world class persons can be groomed to be world class leaders. And what do i mean by a world class person? Not much, simply a person possessing some skills and habits that are essential to be successful in this fast changing liberalized, globalized, privatized world! Let us take some such things one by one :
1. Attention efficiency :
We are surrounded by excellent learning opportunities. If we are able to use this great gift of God to all the mortal ones known as attention efficiency, our mind will gradually pick up and store all what is needed to grow ahead. But what surprises me is that how ignorantly many people keep on passing through same experiences and situations without being able to pay attention to the obvious! I'll define Attention Efficiency as the tendency to notice the surroundings, and also as the natural habit to look at them, pay attention and learn as a result of it.
2. Belief in the power of knowledge :
Very easy to say, very difficult to practise! When it comes to real life, many youngsters are just incapable of believing in the power of knowledge. They tend to give undue importance to money, political power and other such illusory power sources.
3. Flexibility and adaptability :
There are no fixed roles in today's business set up. For God's sake, we have to overcome our age old bureaucratic mentality. In a government office, one would not move beyond his or her work space. But not in today's corporate world! A corporate leader is expected to take care of all unstructured situations. And this is true for everyone. The demands of a changing world order can never be static. One needs to champion flexibility and one has to adapt oneself to any situation or role.
4. Ability to unlearn and relearn :
It's really interesting to note how quickly the things we learn with keen interest become outdated. The world is changing very fast and the rate of change is also growing by leaps and bounds. Alwin Toffler has stated that illiterates of the twenty first century are not those who cannot read or write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn. We need constantly to relearn our lessons with some alterations and we also need to forget a lot many out of them!
5. Ability to accept his own fallibility :
We are human beings. We can and will make mistakes. But the more important fact is our ability to learn and move on. Lack of confidence has definitely caused many a career tremendous damage but so has over confidence too!
6. Quick learning skills :
The real learning happens on the streets or on the workplace. And a world class person is not only mentally ready to learn consistently but is also able to train his mental faculties to learn quick, real quick and everywhere!
7. Habit to read proactively :
Oh! Can we imagine a world without books? The lifetime wisdom and knowledge of a thinker is covered in a book. World class persons today are habitual of reading. They not only read a variety of material, but are also able to read proactively. They master the art of reading between the lines. They are able to gauge the mindset of the author and are also capable of discounting the impact of his or her illogical beliefs on the writings.
No business school can teach these things. In fact, no school or college can teach these. Then how can one acquire these valuable traits? A right attitude, willingness to stay relevant and respect for the world are some of those inherent skills that are required to pick up these habits. But one thing is sure. The probability of forming these habits is definitely higher in a developing economy that offers challenges to survive. I am sure contemporary India fulfils the conditions but of course, the commonly found parental care and over protection is a hurdle.
Let them grow. Let them face problems. Let them suffer from their mistakes. Just guide them to pay attention a bit more actively. That's it!
1. Attention efficiency :
We are surrounded by excellent learning opportunities. If we are able to use this great gift of God to all the mortal ones known as attention efficiency, our mind will gradually pick up and store all what is needed to grow ahead. But what surprises me is that how ignorantly many people keep on passing through same experiences and situations without being able to pay attention to the obvious! I'll define Attention Efficiency as the tendency to notice the surroundings, and also as the natural habit to look at them, pay attention and learn as a result of it.
2. Belief in the power of knowledge :
Very easy to say, very difficult to practise! When it comes to real life, many youngsters are just incapable of believing in the power of knowledge. They tend to give undue importance to money, political power and other such illusory power sources.
3. Flexibility and adaptability :
There are no fixed roles in today's business set up. For God's sake, we have to overcome our age old bureaucratic mentality. In a government office, one would not move beyond his or her work space. But not in today's corporate world! A corporate leader is expected to take care of all unstructured situations. And this is true for everyone. The demands of a changing world order can never be static. One needs to champion flexibility and one has to adapt oneself to any situation or role.
4. Ability to unlearn and relearn :
It's really interesting to note how quickly the things we learn with keen interest become outdated. The world is changing very fast and the rate of change is also growing by leaps and bounds. Alwin Toffler has stated that illiterates of the twenty first century are not those who cannot read or write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn. We need constantly to relearn our lessons with some alterations and we also need to forget a lot many out of them!
5. Ability to accept his own fallibility :
We are human beings. We can and will make mistakes. But the more important fact is our ability to learn and move on. Lack of confidence has definitely caused many a career tremendous damage but so has over confidence too!
6. Quick learning skills :
The real learning happens on the streets or on the workplace. And a world class person is not only mentally ready to learn consistently but is also able to train his mental faculties to learn quick, real quick and everywhere!
7. Habit to read proactively :
Oh! Can we imagine a world without books? The lifetime wisdom and knowledge of a thinker is covered in a book. World class persons today are habitual of reading. They not only read a variety of material, but are also able to read proactively. They master the art of reading between the lines. They are able to gauge the mindset of the author and are also capable of discounting the impact of his or her illogical beliefs on the writings.
No business school can teach these things. In fact, no school or college can teach these. Then how can one acquire these valuable traits? A right attitude, willingness to stay relevant and respect for the world are some of those inherent skills that are required to pick up these habits. But one thing is sure. The probability of forming these habits is definitely higher in a developing economy that offers challenges to survive. I am sure contemporary India fulfils the conditions but of course, the commonly found parental care and over protection is a hurdle.
Let them grow. Let them face problems. Let them suffer from their mistakes. Just guide them to pay attention a bit more actively. That's it!
