This vulture can teach you dear corporate....

Most of the corporate bosses would expect and wants the people around them (subordinates) to respect and revere them as their great leaders. If they experience anything against their expectation and desire, then the leaders even start blaming those who doest not praise and worship them as leaders. The question is how one should prove and display ones leadership dominance in corporate?

Only when one develops the requisite leadership qualities and the right ingredients, people around them would respect them. Therefore the leaders and the corporate bosses must learn this aspect and must develop the requisite qualities, knowledge, wisdom and competency. Above all, the people also must develop the qualities of how to showcase the image that would command respect of people. Such qualities must have attractiveness and uniqueness as well.

Nature has set an example for the corporate bosses to learn about how to establish their leadership dominance. Look at the lammergeyer or bearded vulture. This bird of prey is considered as one of the distinctive and inspiring birds among avifauna. Some of its special qualities are not the creation of nature or it has from birth and therefore it is different. It makes itself different by knowing and doing right things and that is how it proves its dominance and leader qualities and achieve/gain leader acceptance.

The bearded vulture is known to dye its feathers. They have whitish or beige coloured feathers in the breast and facial regions. The bird is known to dye their feathers with iron rich mud and mineralized clay and make their plumage look brilliant. They have understood the science of red/shiny colour being the signal of dominance. By colouring their plumage red, they establish their dominance, social status and rank in their flock. More attractively coloured bearded vulture is the one enjoys great respect and acceptance from other members of its community especially during breeding season.

The message is clear. To achieve respect and acceptance as leader, one has to have the wisdom to know what quality or trait they need. Once the requirement is understood, the people also must understand how they can meet such requirement and fill up the gaps. By knowing the above is not enough they also must engage in doing the right thing to acquire and fulfill the qualities that are essential for leader acceptance. When many animals use their physical strength and aggression to establish their dominance, look at the intelligence of bearded vulture. It is indeed different.

Do not try to use your power, authority or ownership to make your people to respect and accept you. Even if you achieve such respect, such respect of people will not be true, sincere and to your merit. Such respect would only be the outcome of pretensions and falsehood and nothing else. If the corporate bosses and owners settle with such respect and recognition of people, it may however fulfill their ego needs, but definitely it would destroy the culture of the organization. Progressively, only sycophants and not successful leaders would emerge from such culture.

Learn to decode the best examples of nature. Learn and appreciate the insight and intelligence of bearded vulture and from it, learn your leadership quality as well.

Dr S Ranganathan, ClinRise Derma Pvt., Ltd., Chennai

Desire, Dream and Destination – Social Entrepreneur Forum