How Coaching Can Develop Your Leadership Skills—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—The Father of “Soft Leadership” & International Leadership Guru

 

Coaching involves the transfer of knowledge, skills, and abilities from coach to coachee. It is an ongoing professional relationship between coach and coachees. It discovers the hidden talents of the coachees and develops certain competencies and capabilities and skills and abilities through continuous interaction, questioning, and feedback. Finally, it aligns these skills and abilities with the talents of the coachees so that the latter can achieve all-round success. It is a smarter and wiser way of doing the hard work.

Coaching is a gift from God. If you get a good coach who is passionate about making a difference in your personal, professional, and social life then you are really lucky. Coaches usually pay more attention to listening and observation and then shoot coachees with open-ended questions. It ultimately helps the coachees to touch their subconscious mind and come out with viable solutions and ideas.

Coaching Types and Methods

Coaching helps in developing the abilities and skills of the coachees. It makes sure of their personal and professional advancement. There are various types of coaching such as personal coaching, performance coaching, sports coaching, skills coaching, career coaching, corporate coaching, executive coaching, life coaching, and leadership coaching etc., With the rapid growth in technology and mushrooming knowledge workers, there are specialized coaches for specific domains.

There are two methods of coaching such as directive and non-directive coaching. In directive coaching, the coach teaches extensively to upgrade the skills and abilities of the coachees. However, in the non-directive method, the coach questions the coachees and moves them forward toward their goals. In this method of coaching, questioning is the key and it emphasizes on Socratic Method.

There is enormous excitement in making ordinary individuals extraordinary individuals. The money you get out of coaching is temporary but the satisfaction and pleasure you get out of it is everlasting. You can see success from the accomplishments of your coachees. It is beyond imagination and explanation.

• Coaching helps in introspection for coachees. It helps in realizing their ambitions. It helps in the personal, professional, and social success of coachees.

• Coaching helps in challenging limitations, stretching horizons, and empowering with new values and principles.

• Coaching helps shape the next generation of knowledge workers to become successful professionals.

Coaching versus Mentoring

Coaching is different from mentoring. In mentoring, the mentors shape the attitudes, behavior, and personality of the mentees. In contrast, in coaching, the coaches build the skills and abilities of the coachees thus widening their competencies and capabilities. In a nutshell, mentoring involves more soft skills than hard skills while coaching involves more hard skills than soft skills. To distinguish succinctly, coaches accompany achievements and mentors ensure the shaping of the mentees.

Coaching helps in discovering the inherent competencies and capabilities of the coachees and in shaping them as competent individuals. It helps in motivating and building confidence among the coachees through continuous support and guidance. However, mentoring helps in showing the mentees their inherent competencies and thus grooming them.

Coaching is a structured and formal approach while mentoring is not so. Coaching involves physical interaction and constant correction with the right feedback. However, mentoring is all about sharing advice and experiences.

Qualities of Coaches and Coachees

The coaches must be confidential, and friendly, and must be psychologists. They must shoot the right questions to get the best out of coachees. They must be good at giving objective feedback. Above all, they must be good listeners with the right reasoning and analytical bent of mind.

The coachees must be good listeners and should have respect for the coach. They must have a passion for learning and upgrading their skills and abilities and must have the ability to take feedback objectively and constructively.

The Role of Coaches

The roles and responsibilities of coaches are beyond coaching. However, let us briefly put the same as a facilitator, catalyst, learner, domain expert, and above all mentor. They must facilitate learning through constant questioning, interaction, reflection, and feedback. The feedback must be sandwich and issues-oriented rather than individual-oriented. That means it must emphasize on attacking the behavior of the individuals but not the individuals. It must bring out necessary behavioral changes as well as results-driven. They must act as catalysts when they need to bring changes in the thinking level, behavioral level, and performance level. They must be able to build confidence among the coachees and transform them. They must be very strong in their domain so that they can gain respect and win the trust of coachees. Above all, they must also act as mentors and consultants by sharing their knowledge, and experiences and providing advice to the coachees.

Coaching Strategy

The coach must have a clear strategy with a blueprint for the execution of the coaching process which must be aligned with the goals of the coachees. Both coach and coachee must set SMART strategies to achieve desired results. They must set their strategies specifically to avoid deviation and to ensure clarity. The duration of the coaching must be measurable to be clear and to enhance seriousness. The strategies must be achievable so that both the coach and coachees get motivated to take it forward. Besides, the coaching strategy must be realistic and should not be a mere daydream. Finally, the strategy must be trackable and time-bound to stay focused as well as to check for takeaways.

Coaching Stages

It consists of various stages such as direction, relationship, development, execution, and feedback. Firstly, it is vital to set the direction with clear outcomes out of coaching. Secondly, it is necessary to build a relationship between the coach and coachees. The relationship paves the way for better communication resulting in bridging the barriers by looking at the commonalities. Thirdly, emphasize developmental activities to stay focused on the coaching process. Fourthly, execution is the key to effective and successful coaching. Remove the stumbling blocks, if any, during the coaching process by minimizing both internal and external threats and maximizing both strengths and opportunities. The final stage of coaching is the feedback which measures the takeaways out of coaching. Kirkpatrick's evaluation is useful and ideal to find out the coaching outcomes.

Coaching and Questioning

The coaches must use several tools during the coaching process such as usage of inquiry, interaction, reflection, and requests to get the best out of the coachees. In addition, they must learn the art of questioning as questioning is an integral part of coaching. They must ask open-ended questions that help their coachees think broadly in coming out with solutions. Coachees will be able to think and come out with answers when shot with broadening questions as people are usually more committed to their ideas than those of others. Here are the great coaching questions to ask your coachees, or yourself!

• What do you want to learn?

• What skills and abilities do you like to acquire?

• What action will you take to improve your abilities and skills?

• What are your professional goals and how much duration do you take to reach them?

• What do you mean by success? Has success got anything to do with coaching? How do you think coaching helps in achieving your success?

• What are the current challenges you have and how will you overcome them?

These are all are open-ended coaching questions that grill the coachees and dig deep to align their efforts and energies with their goals.

Myths and Truths about Coaching

It is a myth that coaches provide quick-fix solutions to coachees. The coachees must not expect tailor-made solutions for their problems from coaches. What the coach does is spot the potential and passion of the coachees and develop competencies and capabilities.

Another myth prevailing is that coaches are superhuman beings. The truth is that coaches are ordinary individuals with extraordinary mindsets, skill sets, and toolsets to shape the coachees. They are passionate about making a difference in the lives of coachees.

Coaching and Leadership Development

Leadership development is incomplete without referring to coaching and mentoring as coaches coach the coachees through coaching and mentors mentor the mentees through mentoring. Therefore, coaching is included in the content plan of leadership development programs (LDP) as it is considered the key to leadership development. The facilitators and consultants cover various concepts and aspects of coaching during their leadership development programs. Therefore, both coaching and leadership development are two sides of the same coin.

Make a Difference

With the mushrooming knowledge workers, there is huge potential for coaching where people like to unlock and realize their hidden potential. People don't hesitate to spend their money on personal and professional development. Besides, the changing times and technologies resulted in ambiguity and uncertainty and that calls for coaching. Therefore, there is a bright future ahead for all areas of coaching.

Coaching is indeed, a priceless gift. Coaching is an excellent career when both coaches and coachees are passionate. It exists as long as human civilization exists as human beings crave continuous learning and growing.

Coaches must love their profession as Eddie Robinson rightly said, "Coaching is a profession of love. You can't coach people unless you love them." They must have a passion to make a difference for others. They must have a love for their profession rather than money. They will not last but their coaching lasts for several generations. They don't have to regret in the later part of life for not coaching and guiding humankind if they coach timely. Therefore, start coaching from now onwards to make a difference in the lives of others.

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“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Note: I had COVID. I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in bed for five months. My right hand is paralyzed. I am recovering. Thanks for understanding and empathy. https://youtu.be/BFJrSRLHPUk

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

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See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

Copyright©2024 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S. Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided the copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com. This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Your Time Will Come—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—The Father of “Soft Leadership” & International Leadership Guru

 

 “I will prepare, and one day my time will come.” ―Abraham Lincoln

Most people on the earth are optimistic that they will have a good time especially when their time is bad. Life is full of peaks and valleys. Every rise has a fall and every fall has a rise. There is a sunrise after every sunset. Despite knowing these universal truths, most people are concerned excessively about their problems. They hardly explore solutions. The good time arrives when you prepare consistently in your areas of interest with passion and dedication. In this regard, we will outline tools that make your good time come early.

Plan Mindfully and Work Productively

“I'll always be thankful for what I have right now. I feel that it's been a blessing. But I know my time will come. It's just the way life is.” ―Lorena Ochoa

Observe the following tools to ensure that your time will come early. Be optimistic. Martin Seligman said, "Optimists endure the same storms in life as pessimists. But they weather them better and emerge from them better off." Understand the difference between what you can control and what you cannot. Acquire an internal locus of control to make things fall into place. Accept the reality that certain things cannot be controlled. Don't get attached to your past emotionally. Come out of your comfort zone. Shift from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset. Push your limits. Believe in your gut and intuition. Take risks. Network with the right people in your profession. Exchange your knowledge, skills, and abilities with others. Improve your personality, attitude, and behavior. Treat failures as lessons. Don't waste your precious time thinking about your unpleasant past and failures. Be bullish but be prepared for bearish times. Be simple and humble. Take both successes and failures equally. Reflect to improve yourself. Make the right choices. Be logical and rational while making your decisions. Be committed. Strive for excellence.

When you work hard, smart, and wise, your time will come. Your time will not come when you sit idle. Instead, your time will come when you follow your dreams. Your time will come when you take action. Your time will come when you draw a strategy and adopt innovative tools and tactics as per the situation. Understand the fact that things happen at their own pace, not as per your expectations and aspirations. Appreciate that everything happens for a reason. There is often a gap in time and timing between your expectations and realities. Fulton J. Sheen once remarked, "Patience is power. Patience is not an absence of action; rather it is "timing" it waits on the right time to act, for the right principles and in the right way." Hence, be patient and prepare persistently to wait for your day. Remember, every dog has its day.

Conclusion

“The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” ―Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace.

No power on the earth can prevent the talent from coming to the top. Never wait for your time. Invest your present time productively and effectively to enable your good time to arrive early. When you pray to God your prayers will be heard. But your time will come when you come out of your comfort zone and take action. To conclude, take action right now to enable your time to come early.

“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”  — Mae West

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“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Note: I had COVID. I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in bed for five months. My right hand is paralyzed. I am recovering. Thanks for understanding and empathy. https://youtu.be/BFJrSRLHPUk

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

Substack: https://professormsrao.substack.com

X: http://twitter.com/professormsrao

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/profmsr7

Meta: https://www.facebook.com/Professor-MS-Rao-451516514937414

See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

Copyright©2024 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S. Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided the copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com. This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Be The Change That You Wish To See In The World—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—The Father of “Soft Leadership” & International Leadership Guru

“If someone asks me a question, ‘What is it you see when you look out the window that is visible but not yet seen by others’ I will answer, ‘I see a world filled with people with a huge potential lying untapped. If I can identify their strengths and inspire them to unlock their potential, I feel that I have made a difference in the world.’” ―Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D., The Father of Soft Leadership

There is growing importance attached to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) with companies looking up aggressively and making good profits. Every company is giving returns to its shareholders, paying salaries to its employees making payments to its raw material vendors, and paying interest to its financial institutions. All the people involved in the company right from the stakeholders to the shareholders benefit in different ways. But what is about the common man? He too expects something from the companies, which are generating a lot of wealth. William Pollard aptly said, "It is the responsibility of leadership to provide opportunity, and the responsibility of individuals to contribute".

Prof. Amartya Sen bagged the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998 for his contribution to the cause of Welfare Economics. All the companies across the world are contributing something towards the people by way of CSR.

In developed countries, people are protected by way of social security measures. The unemployed will get some allowance to maintain themselves if there is no job or loss of job. Old age homes are there to protect the old people. Pensions are provided to the old people to sustain themselves. Even if children do not take care of their parents, there are securities provided to the aged people by various means. People have the trend of spending and borrowing, as the people are not bothered about their old age. The risk-taking capacity is higher in those developed countries because one finds himself protected by all means. Whereas in the case of India, unfortunately, we do not have such social security measures as we are still a developing economy.

In this context, it is the people in general who should take up the responsibility individually to support the social groups and communities. I would like to coin it as Individual Social Responsibility (ISR) because society is the collection of all individuals. As too many tiny drops become a great ocean. The collective contribution of all individuals can make our society both qualitative and quantitative. The combined contribution of ISR and CSR will make global society prosperous.

Each individual must come forward to donate either physically or monetarily towards society, as charity begins at home. Mahatma Gandhi aptly said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." Individuals can donate his/her eyes after death to eye banks so that the eyes can bring light to blind people. Individuals can donate whatever the possible amount for the marriage of the daughters of poor families. Similarly, everyone must do something on the eve of their birthday or marriage or any auspicious day at the orphan homes. Those who are not blessed with children can adopt children from orphan homes. Where there is a will there is a way. If there is an attitude of charity then everyone can contribute to society in many ways.

Each literate must make a firm commitment and take a pledge to create one more literate. India still lives in villages and the majority of illiterates are there in the villages who still grope in darkness. It is time we wake them up and raise their expectations and aspirations towards contributing to a better society. To put it in the words of Jonas Salk, "Our greatest responsibility is to be good ancestors." One should always be proud of being a good ancestor rather than a good inheritor.

A few people do not have time but they have a big heart and they contribute a lot to society after adjusting their hectic schedules. To put him in the lines of Anthony Robbins, "Life is a gift and it offers us the privilege, opportunity, and responsibility to give something back, by becoming more."

Teaching professionals can teach the poor and needy daily for an hour and can contribute to society. They must train the less privileged lot so that they can earn their living. Those who get good salaries can part away a month of their annual salary for sponsoring a poor student or they can monthly earmark an amount for the education of poor children.

Child labor is a matter of grave concern in India. Many parents, due to lack of economic resources, send their children to work although they know that it is illegal to exploit their children. Every individual must look at the problem at the root level and find out and check it. Paul Tillich said, “The first duty of love is to listen.” Every individual must be proactive and should listen to the conscience of the needy to meet their needs.

Women at home are still the untapped potential in India. Teaching skills like knitting, making jute bags, tailoring, beauty parlor services, cloth printing, mat making, repairing TV and radio, and making cotton and nylon bags will help them learn and make extra income. The extra income so generated will improve their living standards. And also teaching about yoga and meditation can help them establish their establishments. Nowadays people work harder and they are developing high-stress levels. Opening meditation or yoga centers relieves their stress levels and enhances their productivity levels.

There is a limitation to the charity work and the best thing is to help them stand on their own feet. There is a Chinese proverb, which says, “Give a fishnet and teach a man how to fish so that he can have plenty of fish regularly.” Instead of giving fish daily, teach a person how to catch fish so that the person can become confident and independent. All individuals must look forward to teaching things or concepts in such a way that they stand on their legs and live independent and dignified lives.

Children can also participate in various constructive activities such as bringing awareness about ecology by planting one at their homes and watering regularly. They can once in a while go in groups to bring awareness about rainwater harvesting, controlling the traffic, helping blind people to cross over busy roads, etc.,

When someone extends help in return s/he should not demand a simple 'thanks', s/he must take a firm commitment from the person to extend such help to two more people and ensure that the network grows exponentially. Over some time we would find a society filled with great charitable people resulting in the concept of 'Sarwa Jano Sukhino Bavanthu (let all people live with peace and happiness).

A lot of dry land is lying unutilized/untapped. Individuals must come forward to make it fertile and cultivable to increase revenue. Abraham Lincoln aptly said, "You can't escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today." What could become a major problem tomorrow must be addressed right now.

The idea of ISR (Individual Social Responsibility) has come and it is here to stay because ‘No one can stop the idea whose time has come.’

“Nothing is greater than serving others with a great heart. We live in a world where there is a huge competition for takers and the least competition for givers. So, be a giver and serve your societies and communities to build a better world.” ―Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D., The Father of Soft Leadership

Reference

https://www.amazon.com/Soft-Leadership-Innovative-Negotiation-Prosperity/dp/1628655909

Share if you care!

“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Note: I had COVID. I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in bed for five months. My right hand is paralyzed. I am recovering. Thanks for understanding and empathy. https://youtu.be/BFJrSRLHPUk

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

Substack: https://professormsrao.substack.com

X: http://twitter.com/professormsrao

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/profmsr7

Meta: https://www.facebook.com/Professor-MS-Rao-451516514937414

See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

Copyright©2024 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S. Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided the copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com. This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Global Leadership: Search For Similarities, Not Differences—Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.—The Father of “Soft Leadership” & International Leadership Guru

 

The present world demands a unique leadership to tackle the challenges arising out of complexity and uncertainty globally. We can call it global leadership because the current globalization opened the floodgates of the economy by collapsing the borders and integrating the entire world.

Global leadership is the ability to unify all forces and factors under one platform to achieve global goals and objectives such as saving the environment, maintaining peace and security, and ensuring all-around prosperity for humankind. It calls for unique traits and qualities essential to molding global leaders. These leaders must be equipped with tools and techniques such as mindset, skill set, and toolset to name succinctly. Let us look at a few of these traits:

Global mindset: They need to think globally with a global mindset. They cannot just develop a global mindset by merely reading books. Books will help with theoretical inputs and equip them to have a fair idea about global leadership. What is required is to work in a cross-cultural ambiance to develop a global mindset and experience the challenges.

Cultural competency: Love your mother, but don’t hate others’ mother. You need to love your culture and respect others’ culture as well. The leaders need to learn and empathize with others and must be strong at both cultural competence and cultural flexibility which is possible only when they have cultural tolerance.

High internal locus of control: Global leaders must have a high internal locus of control where they must have the mental ability to pull the strings towards their goals. Usually, things don't go as scheduled. Things go out of control due to the forces and factors which are beyond human control. Besides, it is difficult to predict what happens next due to the rising complexity. Leaders with strong internal locus of control will be in a better position to take on global challenges.

Managing uncertainty and complexity: Learn to accept the reality that things are getting more uncertain and complex due to rapid changes in technology. It is tough to predict where the technology will take us to the next level. Therefore, leaders must be prepared mentally to face the challenges head-on. They should learn to live with uncertainty and complexity.

Change is constant: Global leaders must have the flexibility to change constantly with the changing conditions. What goes on well today may not go well tomorrow as the rules of the game are constantly redrawn. They should learn to reinvent themselves situational, socially, culturally, technologically, and politically to sail smoothly and successfully along with the global stream.

Knowledge workers: The leaders must be open to learning and development constantly. They should open up their minds and hearts to welcome all cultures and communities wholeheartedly without any prejudices. They must be specialized in a few areas to stay ahead of others and to stand out from the pack. Passion to learn and grow must be the slogan for these leaders. Above all, they should share their knowledge as knowledge grows when shared.

Appreciate similarities, not differences: It is rightly said, "Every country is our country because it is the country of our God." Leaders must be in a position to realize and respect cultural differences and similarities. They must have the ability to connect people culturally through a common thread by highlighting the similarities rather than by focusing on differences. It helps in binding and bonding mankind emotionally paving the way for common goals—global peace, prosperity, and ecology.

No one can become a global leader overnight. It is a step-by-step process where the leaders have to undergo the process by taking up assignments globally. They must understand cultural diversity and undergo diversity training periodically. They need to update themselves regularly by sharing their knowledge and by becoming knowledge leaders. Finally, leaders need to demonstrate more soft skills rather than hard skills to gain acceptance and evolve as global leaders.

Takeaway: Practice global leadership

Share if you care!

“Things You Don’t Know about Professor M. S. Rao” http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2015/10/things-you-dont-know-about-professor-m.html

Read my ‘Vision 2030 One Million Global Leaders’ URL: http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com/2014/12/professor-m-s-raos-vision-2030-one_31.html

Note: I had COVID. I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in bed for five months. My right hand is paralyzed. I am recovering. Thanks for understanding and empathy. https://youtu.be/BFJrSRLHPUk

Life is great!

Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/M.-S.-Rao/e/B00MB63BKM

Vision 2030: https://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/professormsrao

Substack: https://professormsrao.substack.com

X: http://twitter.com/professormsrao

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/profmsr7

Meta: https://www.facebook.com/Professor-MS-Rao-451516514937414

See the Light in You: https://www.amazon.com/See-Light-You-Spiritual-Mindfulness/dp/1949003132

Thanks for reading!

Kindly share your thoughts and comments below, I’m sure someone out there will find your story useful.

Copyright©2024 MSR Leadership Consultants India. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

This is a nonprofit blog to share Professor M.S. Rao’s passion and vision to build one million students as global leaders by 2030. Please don't cut articles from my blog and redistribute by email or post to the web. The use of this material is free provided the copyright is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the Blog http://professormsraovision2030.blogspot.com. This material may not be sold, or published in any form, or used in the provision of business services to a third party without permission.

Solitude is the Key to Fortitude—The Father of “Soft Leadership” & International Leadership Guru

 

 “We live in a very tense society. We are pulled apart... and we all need to learn how to pull ourselves together.... I think that at least part of the answer lies in solitude.” —Helen Hayes

Life is becoming more complex with the rapid changing technology. Stress levels among the people are rising at alarming rates with the rising aspirations and expectations of the people. Companies demand a lot from their employees to beat the stiff competition which is possible only by being innovative and creative in delivery of goods and services. In this process, employees undergo fatigue at the workplace resulting into higher stress levels. Employees also want to prove and survive themselves by going extra mile. It is in this context, solitude is the need of the hour to break stress, anxiety monotony and boredom.

What is Solitude?

“Inside myself is a place where I live all alone, and that's where I renew my springs that never dry up.” —Pearl Buck

People often confuse between solitude with loneliness. In fact, it is not so. Solitude is a state of being alone for a short-term where in there will not be any physical contact with others. It is like taking a break once in a week by totally avoiding the routine work. It is also like taking a short leave for vacation. As people go for fasting without taking food for giving rest to the internal system, people also go for solitude for giving rest to mind for sometime.

Loneliness versus Solitude

“We enter the world alone, we leave it alone.” —James Anthony Froude

Often loneliness and solitude are interchangeably used by people. However, there is a thin line separating these both. Loneliness is a negative state whereas solitude is a positive state. Solitude helps in engaging oneself internally with a healthy thought process as a companion. Loneliness reflects missing something in life. It represents isolation. Loneliness depletes mind and body while solitude restores. Loneliness is bitterness while solitude is sweetness. To put it succinctly, solitude is chosen while loneliness is imposed.

Merits of Solitude

“True silence is the rest of the mind, and is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment.” —William Penn

• It is the best way to get to know about yourself.

• It removes the clutter and purifies your mind thus enhancing your concentration.

• It helps in beating stress levels.

• It helps you dig deep within and brings out the best.

• It helps in better self-awareness, self-control and self-discipline.

• It helps in recouping the lost energies. Besides, it builds fresh energies, enhances creativity and innovation.

• It helps in exploring yourself analytically thus improving your personality for all-round success.

• It replenishes your energies and helps you move further and forward with confidence and optimism.

Solitude is Fortitude

“No man should go through life without once experiencing healthy, even bored solitude in the wilderness, finding himself depending solely on himself and thereby learning his true and hidden strength.” —Jack Kerouac

When you do routine things you get bored. Then, it is time to go for solitude for self-analysis and introspection. When you want to do things differently, it is time to go for solitude. People go to beaches and spend time in solitude in the sounds of sea waves as it provides solace and strengthens will-power.

History reveals that several great leaders preferred solitude whenever they were in distress. In the epic Mahabharat, at the fag end of Kurukshetra battle, Duryodana underwent inside the water to remain calm for sometime and also to take in fresh energies. It was a kind of solitude. Saints and sages go for solitude to search themselves internally. They go to a serene place and enjoy in a state of solitariness. Therefore, solitude is fortitude.

Conclusion

“Solitude shows us what should be; society shows us what we are.” —Robert Cecil

People should spend sometime in solitude everyday so as to stay healthy physically, mentally and spiritually. It should be treated as an investment and expense of time. Few companies provide sabbatical leave to their employees who work for some period. It helps them to unwind themselves and get back to work with recharged energies. To sum up, it is essential for individuals and institutions to go for solitude regularly keeping in view of the growing uncertainty and complexity due to rapid technology.

“The happiest of all lives is a busy solitude.” —Voltaire

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Professor M.S. Rao, Ph.D.

Founder of MSR Leadership Consultants, India

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