Leadership Wisdom From The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: The 8 Rituals of Visionary Leaders (19 page)

“That’s so true, Julian. We have this one young guy who started out as a shipping clerk. He was a really nice kid — one of the few people in the company I connected to in any real way — and from time to time I would have a quick chat with him. He told me that he really wanted to try his hand at computer programming but lacked the skills. So I sent him through a training program at no cost to him. Pretty soon, at lunchtime he was hanging around with the other programmers and giving them a hand. It became clear that the kid was gifted, so one of my managers gave him a job writing software programs.”

“So where is he now?”

“He’s our number-one programmer. One of our competitors tried to lure him away with the incentive of a much higher income, but he turned the offer down. Said he was happy just where he is. I wish all my team felt that way.”

“Maybe they would if you invested in them as you did in the young hotshot. You rewarded him with the chance to develop himself; he, in turn, rewarded you with his trust. See, another reason why people resist change is that they simply don’t trust the leadership. They don’t believe their managers and supervisors
have their best interests in mind. People challenge those who lead egocentrically. Helping your employees to become massively competent will change all that. If you see yourself as a builder of people, they will see that you are committed to them. One very successful company I used to represent allotted only four days of the week for work.”

“What about the fifth?”

“It reserved that for training its people.”

“Unbelievable.”

“Having emphasized the importance of continuous improvement of your people, never forget the forest for the trees.” “What do you mean?”

“All too often well-intentioned leaders bring in the speakers, send their team members to seminars, invest in the latest business books and tapes, but they fail to remember the most important thing.”

“Which is?”

“Knowledge that remains unapplied is worthless.
Success is not determined by what you know. Many employees realize what things they need to do to help the organization prosper. Lasting success comes only through acting on what you know, putting it into practice. To become a truly world-class company, you and your people must move from learning to doing and from wishing to being. I still recall that in his little hut Yogi Raman had a saying that reminded him of the importance of acting on positive intentions.”

“What did it say?”

“It read, ‘Spring has past, summer has gone and winter is here. And the song that I meant to sing is still unsung. I have spent my days stringing and unstringing my instrument.’ I believe those
words kept him connected to the fact that time is passing and now is the time to translate your good ideas into real results.”

Julian then looked up at the sky, staring at one particular area and muttering something that sounded like, “I’ll be looking for you soon, my friend.” By now, I’d grown used to his sometimes odd behavior and chalked it up to his exposure to the otherworldly sages in the Himalayas.

“Okay, a final thought before we call it a morning,” he continued, returning his attention to me. “I know you must be tired from all the excitement earlier and I’ve got some things I have to attend to today. The last of the natural laws that will help you master change is the one I mentioned to you last time we met:
as you sow, so shall you reap.
It’s the ancient Law of the Harvest.”

Julian then walked me over to his vegetable garden. “I spend some time every morning cultivating my garden. I show it great respect since its produce feeds me. I lovingly till the soil, offer it water and keep it clear of weeds. I have learned that the more I care for it, the more it will care for me. These vegetables are another one of the reasons I look as young as I do.”

Julian then reached over and pulled out a fresh bunch of carrots. I was amazed at how big they were and told him so.

“Want to take some of these home with you?”

“Sure, Samantha would love them.”

“You see, Peter, our minds are very much like this garden. If we care for them, if we cultivate them and if we put in only the best nourishment, they will produce a bounty that will lead us to success. The problem with most people is that they let anything in. They start their days reading the negative stories in the newspaper. Then they have negative thoughts while waiting in traffic. Once at work, they focus on all the negative things rather than
having the wisdom to search for the positives. And then, at the end of the day, after filling their minds with nothing but the worst input, they wonder why they feel so tired and miserable. Remember, your mind can either be your best friend or your worst enemy. Don’t let the weeds take over. Manage your inner morale. Assume full responsibility for attitude control. As you sow, so shall you reap.”

“My father used to tell me that one,” I said quietly.

“It sounds like he was a wise man,” noted Julian. “You see, when you really get down to it, leaders don’t lead companies. They don’t even lead people. What they really lead and inspire are
attitudes.
They show their people the higher reality that waits for them on the horizon and then equip them with the enthusiasm and skills they need to get there. So place a premium on positive thinking in your organization. Believe me, it’s not ‘soft stuff’ like many unenlightened leaders and managers will tell you. An inspired, energized mind-set is the very essence of success.

“I’ll tell you something else,” Julian added.
“In this new era of business you are privileged to live in, ideas are the true commodity of success. How far you go will be determined by how well you think.
As Disraeli said, ‘Nurture your mind with great thoughts for you will never go any higher than you think.’”

“That’s a really good point, Julian. What you mean is that, when all is said and done, the only limitations to our success lie within our thinking.”

“Exactly. Think about it for a second. Every great discovery, achievement or invention began as a simple thought in the mind of an inspired man or woman. Edison’s idea to create the incandescent light bulb or Salk’s desire to develop a vaccine to protect against polio or Gandhi’s drive to deliver his people to freedom all
began as a single thought in their minds. Nothing more, nothing less. Are you beginning to see the power that lies within the ten-pound mass resting between your shoulders and the shoulders of your people?” “Yes.”

“So one of the best change-management disciplines you can possibly follow is to start conditioning your mind and the minds of your people to view all the upheaval that is going on as one huge opportunity to learn, grow and succeed. Train them to constantly see the good in every circumstance, the possibilities where others see adversity. Visionary leaders show their people a higher, more inspiring reality when the rest of the world sees darkness,” Julian said, his voice filled with passion. “As Helen Keller said, ‘No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit.’

“Oh, and by the way,” Julian added, “I also suggest you tell your people to become inverse paranoids. It will really boost productivity and morale.”

“What’s an inverse paranoid?”

“An inverse paranoid is someone who believes the world is conspiring to do something
good
to him or her. And as the great Harvard psychologist William James once said, ‘Belief creates the actual fact.’”

“I like that one.”

“It’s true, Peter. Our expectations create our reality. Success in business and in life is a self-fulfilling prophecy. Thoughts have power — never forget this timeless natural law. You see, thinking is a lot like walking down these footpaths,” said Julian, as he pointed to an intricate series of paths leading to different locations, away from his hut, “Every day, you have a choice as to which
path you will take. Take one path and it is certain to take you to one destination. Choose another, it will take you to an entirely different place. If there’s one thing the sages taught, it’s that the quality of your leadership can ultimately be traced back to the quality of your choices.” “Really?”

“Sure. The ageless law of cause and effect always prevails. The level of your success will, at the end of the day, boil down to what activities and initiatives you have chosen to focus on. What people you have chosen to surround yourself with. What opportunities you and GlobalView have chosen to seize. What books you have chosen to read.”

“And what thoughts I have chosen to allow into the garden of my mind,” I said, fully grasping the point Julian was making about the power of choice.

“Excellent, Peter. I couldn’t have asked for a better student, you know,” replied Julian. “So like I say, thinking is like walking down these footpaths. If you have the self-discipline to choose the right one, it will take you to where you are hoping to go. But if you take the wrong one, you can be certain you will never reach your predetermined destination. And that’s what negative thinking is all about. A stressful thought enters your mind and rather than moving on to another more enlightening one, you walk down that path. And just like on these footpaths, the more times you walk down that negative path, the more familiar it will become. The more it will feel like this is the path for you. And we both know where that kind of mind-set will lead you in this era of change. Yogi Raman shared with me the fact that the Sanskrit word for ‘funeral pyre’ appears strikingly similar to the word for ‘worry’”

“Amazing.”

“Actually it’s not when you think about it. The two are related.” “Really?”

“Sure.
The funeral pyre burns the dead while worry burns the living.
So when a disempowering thought slips into your mind, refuse to empower it by lending it further energy. Refuse to go down that path and quickly move on. It will make a world of difference in the way you think and feel.”

“Mark Twain used to say, I’ve had a lot of trouble in my life, some of which actually happened.’ Now I finally understand what he meant by it,” I observed.

“I’ll have to remember that one, Peter. As you can tell, I love to quote the wisdom of great thinkers and that’s a good one.”

As Julian led me through the forest back to where my four-wheel drive rested, I contemplated all the changes GlobalView was going through and how I might apply his leadership wisdom to use them to our advantage. In our short time together, I began to see that change really was nature’s way of ensuring that things evolved and improved. Rather than fighting it, I now understood I had to surrender to it and align myself with it if I hoped to meet with success. I had to adopt a new, more enlightened worldview and focus on the tremendous opportunities presented by this new era of business we found ourselves in. I had to stop blaming change and become a part of it. As Thomas Fuller once observed, “Accusing the times is but excusing ourselves.” My managers and I had to stop being so reactive and become more adaptive. We had to become visionary leaders. It had been an extraordinary morning and I told Julian so.

“The best is yet to come, my friend. You won’t believe where our next meeting will take place. I have quite a session planned for you,” he chuckled.

“I can’t wait,” I replied, shaking my head from side to side. “I better make sure all my health insurance is paid up. Learning the rituals of visionary leaders has been quite an adventure! So where will it be?”

“At the Yaleford Military Base,” came the straightforward reply.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“No. It’s the perfect place for me to reveal the fifth ritual of the timeless leadership system that Yogi Raman shared with me deep within the Himalayas. Let’s meet at 8:00 P.M. next Friday night.”

“Sure. Do I get a quick preview?” I asked, unable to control my curiosity.

“Sure, why not. Have a look for yourself,” Julian said as he reached into his robe and pulled out yet another of the wooden puzzle pieces I now looked forward to receiving. I had discovered that the previous ones all fit together perfectly and were starting to form some sort of image. I was sure that this new addition would add further clarity to the shape that was forming.

“I can’t see any letters on this one, Julian. What’s wrong?”

“It’s upside down, my friend,” he offered with a grin.

Sure enough, when I rotated the piece I saw the markings I had hoped for, the next clue to how I could transform my leadership and jump-start our organization. The inscription read only,
Ritual 5: Focus on the Worthy.

Chapter 8 Knowledge Summary • Julian’s Wisdom in a Nutshell

The Ritual
The Essence	The Ritual of Adaptability and Change Management
The Wisdom	• To master change, develop the discipline of managing the unexpected
• Only a learning culture grows amid change. Champion constant intellectual development and skills improvement. The best antidote to the fear that change evokes is knowledge. In these turbulent times, he who learns most wins.
• There is joy in change. Without change, there is no progress. Change is essential for our evolution as a civilization and necessary for our survival. Change is humanity’s best friend.
The Practices	• Become massively competent
• Move from learning to doing
• Inspire positive attitudes to the opportunities change presents
Quotable Quote	Doing the same things every day cannot deliver new results. To change the results you are getting, you need to change the things you are doing. You must transform the way you are leading.