Leadership in an organisation is not a job, a task, a role or a level on an organisation'schart. It is ?a sacred calling to make a life-enriching difference in the world.? A beautiful story from the Talmud illustrates the point: ?Every blade of grass in all of creation has an angel bent over it, whispering these words of encouragement ? grow, grow, grow.? Whatever be our belief system, the impulse to grow, to grow as a family ? to grow as a team, to grow as a society ? this desire to grow is the evolutionary world of life itself.
As leaders and people, we are all ?awake? to a certain degree. But the question is: What are we awake to? Are we awake to our ego, or self-interest, our fears, our image, our success? If ego, self-interest and fear are the masters of our identity, then our leadership will play out in a certain way. On the other hand, if we are awake to our deepest essence as a person, focused on serving the needs of others, and if we have faith that is bigger than just about any circumstance we encounter, then a whole new set of behaviours arise from our deeply awakened leadership. The next question is: Are we awake to our light that serves or to our shadow that copes? The answers to such questions are provided in this small book which will incite the mind to delve further deep into the subject.
The author of the book, in the prologue itself, begins by quoting Smt. Indira Gandhi, the late Prime Minister of India: ?My grandfather once told me that there were two kinds of people: those who do the work and those who take the credit. He told me to try to be in the first group. There is much less competition.? The author says that when reading these lines, the reader should think of Indira Gandhi'sstatement because awakened leaders know that when you work hard, you earn respect from those who work with you. You become more aware of what'sgoing on in your surroundings and you find more fulfilment.
The book presents inspirational impulses leading to awakened leadership and generated through communication and reading. To clarify the concept, the book takes the reader to a walk through history and into the present, reviewing examples of awakened leadership while emphasising authenticity and emotional intelligence as they are crucial to this leadership style. It also reviews the three dimensions of awakened leadership ? internal, external and integrated ? to present models for further clarification.
(Macmillan India Ltd, 2/10 Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi-110 002.)
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