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02 “Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.”GÉRARD DE NERVAL, FRENCH WRITER AND POET

task, such as holding aclass function. Show the

children a plan that enables them toachieve the task step by step. Encour-age them to come out with a plan foreach step. Monitor their progress andlet them know where they go wrong.Suggest to the children how they maybe able to improve. This planning willteach them how to strategise ahead ofsome event.

SPEAKING TREE

1CREATE A NEW YOU: Get materialssuch as crayons, posters/con-struction papers, magazines, and

scissors and distribute them amongyour classmates. Then, ask them todraw, using things that clearly showthat the picture is theirs – such as us-ing cut-outs of their most favourite ac-tivities, foods they like, pets, and what-ever else makes them unique.

Once they have finished theirposters, they can show their complet-ed work to the others. This will makeone more confident to lead.

2SAME OR DIFFERENT:Ask yourfriends to sit in a circle. Ask thefirst child to point to another child

in the circle who is similar to them, ei-ther in appearance, hairstyle or cloth-ing colour. Then, when the child haschosen someone, ask them to note oth-er differences and similarities they havewith the child they have chosen. Thisactivity builds team spirit.

4LEAD THE BLINDFOLDED:This game re-

quires a large in-door or outdoorarea. Divide your classinto two groups and givethem enough blindfolds foreveryone except one mem-ber to put on. Theteams are placed onopposite sides of thespace. The child who isnot blindfolded is required to lead theirteam to the other side of the designat-ed space, using clear commands.

Ensure that each member of theteam has an opportunity to lead theirteam. The winner is the team whichsees its members successfully cross thefinish line.

CHARITY SUP-PORT: This oneis for your

teachers: Help yourclass support a char-ity by organising afundraiser.

Each child canhave a different task. For example, onechild may select the charity, anothermay find a suitable space to hold thefundraising activity, and another childcan collect donations.

6PLANNING STRATEGIES: This oneis also for your teachers: Teachchildren to divide a large task into

smaller steps. Set the children a large

GAM

Adherence to ‘Dharma’ (Righteousness)

Tenacity and Perseverance

When Krishna gets invited to the palace of Duryodhana for a richfeast, he declines. Instead, he prefers to have simple food atVidura’s place. When a war becomes inevitable, he sides withthe Pandavas. HE TEACHES US: As a leader we should be able torecognise what is right from wrong and choose our side wisely.

DETACHMENTThe manner in which Krishna per-suades a demoralised Arjuna totake up arms by enunciating thebasic principles of the BhagavadGita in Mahabharat is exemplary.The gospel of devotion to duty,

without attachment or desireof reward, continues

to show the wayof life to allthose who seeklight in the darkproblems of life. HE TEACHES US: Krishna not onlypreaches but also practises detach-ment. To be a good leader, youmust start walking the talk.

When the disappearance of a valuable gem, the ‘syaman-tak mani’, is attributed to Krishna, he does not wallow inself-pity. With a chin-up attitude, he keeps working on theproblem till the time it becomes clear that his conduct ispure. HE TEACHES US: Perseverance should be

ingrained in our character. To give up is not an option.

Strategy and VisionKrishna emerges as an eminent strate-gist. All mighty warriors on theKauaravas’ side fall with specificinputs from him (Dronacharya, forexample, is misled to believe that hisson Ashwatthama has fallen). HE TEACHES US:To be successful inlife, a leader must have a strategy.

AccessibilityWhosoever happens to befacing a challenge canapproach Krishna. Whether itis Arjuna or Duryodhana,there is no hesitation inseeking his help. Yes,whether — and how — hedecides to help depends onwhich side of ‘Dharma’ wehappen to be on. Duryodhanagets the support of his entirearmy, whereas Arjuna endsup getting him as a personalcharioteer. The privilege ofaccessibility is granted evento those opposed to him.

When Abhimanyu gets killed onthe battle field, a grief-stricken Arjuna vows toslay the warrior respon-sible — Jayadratha — bythe next sunset, or endhis own life. Krishnamanages to save Arjuna’shonour, bringing much relief tothe Pandavas. To those who remain

committed and loyal to them, leaders provideunstinted support.

HE TEACHES US: Leadersshould be able to supporttheir team members whenev-er the occasion arises.

Teammates should have theconfidence that when things go

bad, they have someoneto depend on.

LEADERSHIP

Seen from a management point of view, Lord Krishna is a leader par excellence. He managesevents and people in such a manner that the end result is eventually positive and leads to the

greater good of all. Here are some facets of his personality that could teach us a lesson or two onhow to take over the leadership mantle

Unstinted Support

A friendly demeanourKrishna is like a friend,with whom we can be frankand open. This is the kindof appeal Krishna has.His ready availability ishis unique selling proposi-tion. This is a qualitywhich many a managerwould find good to imbibe.HE TEACHES US: As aleader it is an imperativethat you have a friendlydisposition and not anarrogant approachbecause thenyour team willrelate to you.

Personally, Krishna has little to gain from thegreat war. All his actions are directed towards the overall

benefit of the society. Once Yudhishtira assumes the chargeof the entire kingdom, peace prevails and development comesabout. HE TEACHES US: Great leaders share the same quality

with Krishna. They try to giveback to society in more ways

than one. As a leader bemindful of the

impact of yourdoings.

A global mindset

When it becomes apparent that Jarasandhwould not allow the kingdom of Mathura toenjoy uninterrupted peace as long as he andBalarama are there, Krishna does not hesi-tate to leave his comfort zone. In order to

ensure that the denizens of the cityremain safe, he decides to build anew capital at Dwarka and shift his

operating headquarters there. HE TEACHES US: When dynamicschange, leaders should be flexible

and not fixated.

Flexibility in approach

Leading from behindUnlike Lord Rama, who leads anarmy from the front, Lord Krishnaleads it from behind. The former ledan army of monkeys; the latter ledan army of illustrious people. Eachone has great prowess and expert-ise. In the phase of the industrialrevolution, when manufacturing wasprimary activity, most leaders hadto lead from the front. In other sec-tors, leaders manage from behind.HE TEACHES US: Depending uponthe situation at hand, leaders switchfrom one mode to another. The stylealso varies from person to person.

AT NO STAGE DOWE FIND KRISHNA BLAM-

ING HIS CIRCUMSTANCES. HEIS SELF-ASSURED, CONFIDENT,CLEAR ON WHAT HE WANTS TOACHIEVE. HIS METHODS MAY

BE ROUGH AT TIMES, BUTTHEY DELIVER.

HE TEACHES US: True blueleaders are invariably accessi-ble to their teammates. When

a sudden challenge pops up,anyone can reach out to youand seek guidance. Once the war gets

over and all his sons havegot killed, Dhritarashtraattempts to kill Bhima bycrushing him in a closeembrace. Krishna is ableto read his mind and deftlypushes across a metal stat-ue instead, thereby savingBhima’s life. HE TEACHES US: Smart leaders go beyond ‘analy-

sis paralysis.’ While they do use information,they also rely on their intuition. Once you can

use this intuition, more balanced decision-making comes about.

Intuition

1k

ESto learn life skills

These activities could help you learnleadership skills. Try them in your zero period

3 MOVE THE EGG: Ask yourclassmates to form groupsof four or five. Then, have

the children select a leader fortheir team. Each participant isgiven a spoon and an egg. Theleader has the task of finding aneffective way to move the eggsfrom one point to another.

7VOLUNTEER ROLES:Volunteering plays a role inleadership. Discuss with your

classmates about how they wouldlike to help someone inneed. This gives them achance to practiceleadership and workwith other children.

Seeker: How can we prac-tise positivity in life?■ Mohanji: Positivity is athought and peace is a state.Practising positivity means to

think, speak and act posi-tively. Thought, speech andaction are three levels of

creations which every hu-man being gets involved inevery day. We have numerousthoughts, few words and few-er actions. When you are al-ways thinking, doing and talk-ing positive, your mind will be-come still and calm.

When you look at every-body as an extension of your-self, it will give you a level ofacceptance. You will becomeless critical and judgementalof people; so your thoughtprocess is already positive.

Only when we are looking atanother as outside of us, then

we compare, criticise andjudge, and the mind be-

comes restless. Negativity setsin when you acknowledge andget involved in emotions.

Accept yourself with allyour weaknesses andstrengths; it is the key. Whenyou do that, you begin to ac-cept others, as they are. Beingkind and compassionate leadto inner richness, and it takesyour energy to a higher levelof positivity. ■

Mohanji is a contemporary spiritual Master

Wife asked, “How wouldyou describe me in a few al-phabets?” Husband said,“ABCDEFGHIJK.” Wifeasked the mean! “Adorable,beautiful, cute, delightful, el-egant, fashionable, gor-geous, and hot,” repliedhusband. Wife: “Aw,thank you, but I didn’tunderstand the meaning ofIJK?” Husband said, “I’mjust kidding!”

STRESS BUSTERPsychiatrist: What do you dowhen you feel stressed?Patient: I go to temples.Psychiatrist: Good, so youpray or meditate there?Patient: No, I just mix up allshoes there and watch people looking for them.

It feels awesome.

http://www.speakingtree.in

Kaldan Doma

Human beings arecreatures of habit,driven by emotion

just as strongly as by rea-son. We become used tobeing a certain way, andover time, our reactions topeople, things, and situa-tions around us also beginto follow a pattern.

Especially when thosesituations involve pain,loss or betrayal, our reac-tions can be predicted

based on the personalitieswe’ve developed over theyears. But we don’t all re-act the same way.

Understanding yourown feelings is the first stepto forgiveness. Whether it ispain, loss, and betrayal, thefirst step is to be kind toyourself. Forgiveness is a dif-ficult path to tread upon. Itrequires almost as muchfrom us as it does from theperson being forgiven. Onecannot understand how to

overcome the pain they areexperiencing, and move onto forgiveness. There re-mains a sense of things re-maining unsaid, issues re-maining unresolved.

It is sometimes easierto ignore instead of forgiv-ing. You simply shut downevery thought related tothat incident that causedpain or sorrow and led tobetrayal. So, you can seethat forgiving another per-son is actually a deeply per-sonal and individual expe-rience. ■

YOUR PATH TO GOODNESS

Accept yourself withall your weaknessesand strengths; it is the key

‘ACCEPT YOURSELF’ABCD...

SACREDSPACE

Your Character

As in water face reflects face, so too,

the heart of manreflects man.

Proverbs 227:19✥

Through shallow intellect, the mind

becomes shallow, andone eats the fly, along

with the sweets.Adi GGranth 5582:7

✥Never does a man

portray his charactermore vividly than when

proclaiming thecharacter of another.

Winston CChurchill✥

The problem is peopleare being hated whenthey are real, and are

being loved whenthey are fake.

Bob MMarley

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