There’s something amiss in this country: There’s somebody who’s going round the world pounding his chest and shouting, “Look at me, see I’m back for the third time,” and there’s the world saying, “I think you’ve got it wrong, there’s a brother and sister, in whom we are seeing striking leadership qualities!”

I believe, and this is not a political article, that these elections have shown us qualities of true leadership. And let’s learn some pointers about leadership from the election’s that’s happened:

First learn we are human, not gods, and so limited in our understanding or thinking, so never neglect taking ownership of your mistakes or the mistakes of your team. That is what strong leaders do. They take full responsibility for mistakes, and they are respected much more for doing so.

Secondly, have the boldness to point out what’s not worked and propose methods that will work. Yes, you need to become a problem solver. Which means to think out solutions. People respect problem solvers and solution finders more than blamers. Even if people don’t fully accept your proposal, they will respect you for providing one. It shows that you are truly invested in making things better, and you will gain a reputation for generating ideas, solving problems and improving processes.

Thirdly, treat other people not just the way you would like them to treat you, but go one step farther and treat others the way they want to be treated. Which means investing time and thought to find out and delve into the strengths and weaknesses of others. This is very important as we are not generalising but serving a specific purpose. Focus on what they need and what they care about.

Fourthly, learn to ask questions and remain open to new ideas. Yes, from the recent elections we have found that people really don’t like know-it-alls. If you go around diminishing others while acting like you have a monopoly on bright ideas, you will be disliked. People will respect you less because they don’t feel you value their ideas or expertise.

Fifthly, learn to deal with conflict even when it’s uncomfortable. When you avoid conflict, you send a message that you are afraid, or that their needs are inferior to yours. Turning a blind eye to a conflict as what happened in Manipur is more the style of Nero playing the fiddle while Rome burned.

Finally, allow criticism from others. Never think that only weak people need others. Strong ones have the courage to allow others to provide assistance. When you ask for help, you show your strength. You show that you are indeed confident in your abilities and have the willingness and courage to accept guidance. You show others that you don’t believe yourself to be superior to those around you, and you create opportunities for others to contribute to your development.

Yes, there’s much that we can learn from these elections, especially what was missing, if only we look closely..!

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