N. Raghuraman's Column: Great leaders inspire even before they achieve

Ashok was just 21 years old. There were very few jobs in those days. His restlessness always inspired him to look for opportunities in the armed forces. Then came an opportunity. Not as he had thought but was very close to stepping on that path. It was a post in the CRPF. He decided to try his luck. There were already hundreds of people there. Curious and full of hope. When they were told that the regiment would be deployed in difficult and remote areas, more than half of the men left. Many were then eliminated in the Test rounds that followed. Ashok stayed because he had the stubbornness to achieve something. Before the exhausting day was over, Major KK Chatterjee noticed a hungry and exhausted Ashoka. Major Chatterjee was serving his second service after the Army. They took Ashok to the officers' mess. They were fed to their heart's content and then did something that was not expected. The Major introduced Ashok to his wife. Not as a candidate or a recruit, but as someone who has already contributed. Major spoke so generously about Ashok that Ashok, who was still waiting for selection, did not even know that he had so many qualities. The wife listened attentively to the Major's words. There was curiosity in her eyes and words were coming out of her lips without any pressure from her husband. Those words erased all the fatigue of Ashoka. Why doesn't that happen? The words of a well-dressed, graceful woman were like a garland around Ashok's neck. He felt that he had made a place for himself even before joining. Ashok felt that he was being recognized not for his future position or role, but for the efforts he had put in to reach this point. Even before officially starting duty, a commanding officer trusted him, spoke to him with pride and his wife also admired him. This was the first lesson of Ashok Chaukulkar, who in all these years had not been taught by a school or college book — to accept a young person's achievement early on, to encourage him without waiting, and to take leadership beyond mere commanding. In his first book, Corn on the Cobb and Stories – Portraits of Life, Ashok narrates this experience in his own words that the Major asked him to draft his own appointment letter, which was to be sent to senior officers via wireless radio. This was his second lesson that responsibility does not wait for convenience. Even before he received the appointment letter that day, Ashok learnt how to prepare proposals when he would select people. He left home at 7 a.m. and returned after 9 p.m., but there was one difference — he had an appointment letter in his hand. His book takes you to Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, where he had to report for the first day of duty. From there, his battalion went to Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh in a convoy of 36 vehicles. And then suddenly in the middle of the night, he was sent to Allahabad (now Prayagraj) in Uttar Pradesh, where he was to help deal with the police insurgency. They had to stay there for several days on a hill under a few big trees. What this book taught me is that it's not just stories. Each chapter contains lessons that most of today's children and corporate leaders do not even know about. Due to the abundance of money, our children have started demanding the best facilities and our leaders are not able to properly recognize the best qualities of our young generation. The trick is that when there is an incentive going forward, people follow it wholeheartedly. They don't just work for a salary, but they perform better than expected, because someone has sown the seed of pride in them.