Prakash Seshadri

<h4>In this series of articles, <span style="color: #ed353a;">PRAKASH SESHADRI</span> takes the reader on a journey from
    survival mode to a mature leadership model, by sharpening Emotional and Heartful Quotients, and using examples of
    the challenges that an individual and organization undergo.</h4>
<h4 style="color: #3660be; text-align: left; padding-left: 40px;">Is there a way to move from a survival mindset to a
    growth mindset?<br>
    Do we understand how human beings evolve their competencies?<br>
    Are we clear on the role of Emotional Intelligence in leadership?<br>
    Does the heart have a role to play in sharpening our leadership skills?</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Often leadership is thought to be a skill that is only relevant for those with fancy
    titles and the responsibility for managing large group of people. But leadership is required for all of us,
    regardless of the role we play at work, at home, in the society or any other place of interaction. Each individual
    has the ability to make a difference if they can “sharpen the saw” on their ability to empathize and interact with
    other fellow human beings. The art and science of leadership has evolved over the last decades, thanks to management
    gurus and their books and lectures etc. In the recent past we have seen increased involvement of Mindfulness in
    making leadership more empathetic. But very little has been written about the role of the heart in leadership, even
    though it plays a very important role in most critical decisions that organizations and individuals make on a daily
    basis.</p>
<h4 style="color: #3660be;">Survival Instincts</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let us begin with a story of a lion and a deer. One morning, there was a hungry lion on
    the prowl. He had to run with all his might to catch the deer, else he would die of starvation. The same morning,
    there was a deer out crisscrossing the landscape of the forest. To avoid being in the jaws and paws of the lion, the
    deer was constantly changing her trajectory to survive.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What is the substance of the story? The entire thing boils down to survival. Whether you
    are a deer or a lion, you must run.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">If you are a business leader still waiting for a successful moment, think twice: Have
    you been running the show like a lion or a deer? It is not the force with which you run that counts, it is the
    attitude that makes all the difference.Drawing a parallel between this animal story and what we do as humans, if we
    ask who the lion would be in our office environment, generally it would be the boss. Who are the deer? Usually the
    employees. And what are the parallel survival instincts in organizations? They are quarterly-based targets,
    performance pressures, productivity pressures, research etc. My personal observation going back to the 1980s and 90s
    is that even though the most successful corporate or a fortune 500 company had back-to-back quarters of great
    performance, a single poor performance in the subsequent quarter led to layoffs. This still prevails today.</p>
<h4 style="color: #3660be;">The Pressure of Survival and Productivity</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Wherever we go for corporate engagements, there’s a standard tone: “I am highly
    stressed,” “I have a lot of pressure,” “My boss is at my throat,” “I have huge targets to achieve.” A cross section
    of employees who have been living through similar ordeals have decided to draw the curtains on their lucrative
    careers to settle for relatively quieter jobs. The reason? Cut-throat competition and stress, the silent killer
    responsible for many lives. No one is immortal, so why the struggle? The so-called corporate hierarchy is pushing
    each one to the brink with unrealistic expectations and goals created by every fabric of society, be it the boss,
    manager, family or yourself. In my last 34 years of experience I have realized that this thread of hierarchy is
    inscrutable.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let’s face it, as long as we are at this place, we must run the human race. There are
    many questions that arise:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 40px;">How do we face it?<br>
    What set of skills, knowledge and capabilities are needed to scale up in an organization structure?<br>
    How to be more productive in order to be successful?<br>
    How to achieve expertise?<br>
    How to seize new opportunities?<br>
    How to deliver value to customers?</p>
<p><img  alt="leadership-from-the-heart-part-1" class="has-img-center lazyload "
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/Leadership2_5b1a41efa4.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-04T13:00:37.439Z">
</p>
<h4 style="color: #3660be;">The Competency Spectrum</h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The human survival instinct is reflected in the concept of core competencies, which is a
    very simple model to build core competencies (Broadwell, 1969; Hamel &amp; Prahalad, 1990). You start with
    Unconscious Incompetency (UI) then move on to Conscious Incompetency (CI), then to Conscious Competency (CC), and
    finally to Unconscious Competency (UC).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Let me illustrate with an example. There is a family living in a big apartment complex
    with a swimming pool. When the parents are not aware, the toddler finds her way out of the house, sees other people
    moving on top of the water from one end to another, slides into the water but can’t swim. Fortunately, the child is
    saved. After six months she starts speaking and yet has a fancy to do what the elders are doing. All in all, the
    child never knew that she has to learn to float on top of the water.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">In the CK Prahalad model, this is called Unconscious Incompetency, when are are
    ignorant, when we are not even aware that we are not aware.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This is what happens to many employees when they are pushed down by severe work
    pressure, or when there is a new technology to be learnt, or a new framework to be developed. They are exposed to
    unconscious incompetency. They don’t know that they don’t know.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Now, when the toddler starts to speak, she expresses her interest in going to the pool.
    Her father tells her that she has to learn to swim. So now she has moved from UI to Conscious Incompetency. She
    knows that she has to learn to swim, but she doesn’t yet know swimming. So Conscious Incompetency is when we are
    aware that we are not aware. When a task is assigned to an employee, they are aware they cannot do it and move to
    CI.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Now let’s consider performance measures, such as goals. If my goal, by the age of 10, is
    to become the under 10 state swimming champion, then I have to learn the art of swimming. This is termed the
    “conscious building process of acquiring knowledge and putting that knowledge into practice.” The knowledge that we
    get through books is not enough; we consciously and consistently put our acquired knowledge into practice so that it
    becomes our expertise and we implicitly achieve goals.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This process of developing competency in a conscious manner is what Professor Prahalad
    called Conscious Competency (CC).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">For example, you are driving on an unfamiliar road and in an unfamiliar vehicle, which
    has a new driving system that you have never used. The moment you get into the car, you start checking out the
    driving system, its settings etc. You also load the maps to check the route in advance. Now you are in high alert
    mode as the vehicle and the roads are not familiar. This is akin to the process of competency building. When you
    need to build a competency, you need to be sure of the skills you need and also be conscious of building that
    competency. Hence the term Conscious Competency (CC).</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">If these stages are understood by training managers, HR managers and the leadership
    team, then they will be able to delegate and choose the skilled personnel to implement tasks who can achieve their
    goals.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Lastly, we move into the ultimate aspect, Unconscious Competency (UC), where everything
    happens automatically and unconsciously, like your breath – effortless and seamless – because of mastering knowledge
    and skills to perfection.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">This is how Professor Prahalad introduces core competencies into any organization,
    bringing harmony between multiple resources and skills to make it unique.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>To be continued.</em></p>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by PRAKASH SESHADRI</h4>
<hr>

Leadership from the heart - part 1

<h4><span style="color: #339bd9;">PRAKASH SESHADRI</span> takes the reader from survival mode to a mature leadership
    model, by sharpening Emotional and Spiritual Quotients through the practices of meditation, introspection and
    inquiry.</h4>
<h5 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #b7238f;">Is there a way to move from a survival mindset to a growth
        mindset?<br>
        Do we understand how human beings evolve their competencies?<br>
        Are we clear on the role of Emotional Intelligence in leadership?<br>
        Does the heart have a role to play in sharpening our leadership skills?</span></h5>
<h4><span style="color: #339bd9;">Challenges to Graduating Up the Competency Spectrum</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Why is that some people do not learn fast, and what stops them? I was reading an
    interesting article recently, in which it was suggested that everyone in the world who has ever been born or will be
    born has the same hardware as Albert Einstein or Newton, and our brains are also wired in a similar manner. Einstein
    could achieve so much in his lifetime, but most of us are ineffective though we have the same set of capabilities.
    What is the difference? For hardware to work efficiently we need software and unfortunately people are never taught
    how to build it. I may buy readymade Windows or Mac software and install it, and it works. But how do I write my own
    code, build my own operating system, or write my own app? These are the biggest challenges. Today we cannot build
    our own software because we are not inquisitive; we have lost the ability to ask questions. Every question you ask
    can be replaced by a higher level of questioning, which will expand your consciousness, your state of being and your
    awareness.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The second biggest challenge is to look within and introspect, and we do not make the
    time to do so, so we have lost the art of introspection. Looking within with distractions is very different from
    looking within without distractions. So it brings us back to the competency model. We need to develop these tools.
    Like the Lion and the Deer story, we humans are also busy with our survival, and we do not have the time to hit the
    pause button, to spend time asking questions, and to introspect. In fact, 99.99% of the time many of us are in
    perennial survival mode. Realizing that is the first step: we are moving from Unconscious Incompetency to Conscious
    Incompetency mode.</p>
<div class="text-center">
    <img alt="Leadership from the heart" 
        class="lazyload has-img-center mb-4"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/leadership_from_the_heart_part2_2_b58dfd307e.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T10:51:26.248Z">
</div>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Is all corporate work related to survival? 99.99% of the time no. It’s all about growth,
    inclusion, collaboration and compassion. It’s about getting people together. We need teamwork and, yet, when the
    team comes together, what do we do? The survival instinct, the “fight or flight” instinct, takes over. At a
    leadership level, this survival instinct is embedded in us as power. In most organizations, people are in fight or
    run-away mode. All the key decisions are with one or two people at the top, while others are free to take a tea
    break or a lunch break, but by afternoon they have to accomplish the targets given.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The fight or flight instinct is associated with the older parts the brain as a survival
    mechanism, and it usually generates an emotional response. But where does the root of that emotion come from? It has
    been scientifically shown that feelings and emotions are generated in the heart, which is why we call a person cold-
    or warm-hearted, but we never say a cold-minded person. When a leader leads with true feelings emanating from the
    heart, leading to mutual, respectful engagement and creative work involvement, they build trust and respect and take
    the business further. Such a leader is respected and loved. Employees open up, feeling safe and appreciated, without
    much being said.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">It is commonly understood that communication is 10% data and 90% feeling. For example,
    when an HR person is listening to an employee sharing their woes and grievances, it helps if they are empathetic and
    compassionate and relate to the person’s mindset. The same holds true with a customer; we want to instill in them a
    feeling of security and trust. To develop these skills, we have to go deep within our hearts and connect to our
    inner self, invoking the connection between the mind and the heart. When we can do that, we deem to be a leader –
    one who has the ability to listen and empathize.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">But generally, either we are talking, or, while others are talking, we are busy getting
    ready to respond. We are unable to listen while we are creating our own response. For a leader, it’s of paramount
    importance to still the mind. It becomes so still that whatever the other person is saying is amplified by itself
    and multiplies by itself.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">The second essential quality of a leader is to suspend prejudice. While conversing with
    someone, do not see through a predefined set of filters based on past experiences. We put everyone in multiple slots
    and make judgments about them even before we meet them.</p>
<h4><span style="color: #339bd9;">The Role of Meditation</span></h4>
<p style="text-align: justify;">A successful leader develops stillness of the mind by calming and subsiding thoughts. A
    successful leader also stops being prejudiced, instead developing a motherly attitude and understanding. We can
    intensify our concern and affection for our employees, in spite of their recurring mistakes. We can step into their
    shoes and feel their mindset without an air of prejudice. That kind of essential bonding can be acquired in
    abundance through the practice of meditation.</p>
<div class="text-center">
    <img alt="leadership from the heart - part 2" 
        class="lazyload has-img-center mb-4"
        src="https://cdn-prod-static.heartfulness.org/leadership_from_the_heart_part2_3_262bde7321.jpg?updated_at=2023-04-05T10:52:21.584Z">
</div>
<p style="text-align: justify;">Meditation brings down the reactive instinct, even in catastrophic situations. But how
    many life and death situations do we face in a normal day? Not many. Instead we activate the fight or flight
    response regularly for smaller things, because our system still responds the same way. For example, if someone
    snatches your water bottle, do you react and get agitated, or are you polite and let them take it as a courtesy?
    Once the response is triggered, with the release of hormones, it can take from one minute to 45 minutes to calm
    down, depending on our physiology. Now here is the warning bell: when we are emotional and feeling stressed, it is
    better not to talk, not to decide, and not to react.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">It was beautifully put up by a speaker in a leadership lecture recently: the Ramayana
    would not have happened if King Dasharatha had been silent when Kaikeyi put her hand in the chariot wheel. He
    granted her two boons and one thing led to another, then another, and the Ramayana happened. Even when Dhobi told
    Rama, “Your wife is not chaste,” what did Rama do? Abolished her to the forest. What do these incidents teach us?
    Don’t take any decision in a state of impulse. Allow your system to calm down, and the best way to do that is to
    turn your external focus to an internal focus. To attain a peaceful state, take up meditation, although the outcome
    will depend on your level of interest, intention and the intensity with which you practice.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">So, let’s go back to the Lion and the Deer story. There is a famous quotation: “People
    don’t care how much you know, till they know how much you care.” A true leader understands the pulse of their
    employees. As years pass by, their technical know-how may come to a standstill, but their ability to manage people
    cannot fall down, otherwise it’s over. Their ability to manage people comes from their ability to understand them
    through the heart, and also accept their faults. Nobody is perfect, neither you nor I. We may indulge in presenting
    a perfect demeanor externally, but we are aware of our internal challenges. I can say with certainty that over a
    period of time it’s quite easy to scale up to the next level of leadership, emanating from the heart.</p>
<p style="text-align: justify;">What did the lion and the deer learn? They learnt to co-exist. It is possible.</p>
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<h4 style="text-align: center;">Article by PRAKASH SESHADRI</h4>
<hr>

Prakash Seshadri

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