CHANAKYA’S SEVEN SECRETS OF LEADERSHIP

CHANAKYA’S SEVEN SECRETS OF LEADERSHIP

Chanakya, who lived in India in the 4th Century BC, was a leadership guru par excellence. The treasure of his teachings can be found in his book, The Arthashastra, which deals with good governance based on ideal leadership. 

The concept of the ideal nation in The Arthashastra, called Saptanga, holds that there are seven pillars of a kingdom:

The Secret	Represents	Today in an organization
Swami	The King (The Leader)	The Leader
Amatya	The minister (The King’s advisor and councillors, manager)	The manager
Janpada	The country (the citizens)	Marketing / Customers
Durg	The fort (The housing)	Infrastructure
Kosha	The treasury (Money)	Finance
Dand	The Army (The team)	Teamwork
Mitra	The Ally (The friend)	Consultants / Mentors

In this path-breaking book, Chanakya’s 7 Secrets of Leadership, author Radhakrishnan Pillai delves into Chanakyas Saptanga with the real-life example of D. Sivanandhan. Former Director General of Police, Maharashtra, and the archetype of an able administrator, Sivanandhan shares his guidelines for effective management, highlighting those that make him a dynamic leader.

In Chanakyas 7 Secrets of Leadership, theory meets practice, academic research meets vast experience in police supervision and an age-old formula is revealed in a modern-day success story. Together, Pillai and Sivanandhan bring Chanakya's model to life.

Anyone can use the seven secrets of leadership to run a kingdom effectively. Apply them in your life, and the magic of Chanakyas wisdom will transform you into the ideal leader.

The book, as the authors point is a continuation of ideas given in Dr. Radhakrishnan Pillai’s first book “Corporate Chanakya” and a prior reading of book would help one to understand the concepts much better. The seven secrets have been identified after careful study and analysis from the various chapters of Arthashastra.

The book is as much about police officers those  who have, time and again, infused hope in the lakhs of men and women and pride in the uniform they wear as much it is about leadership. D Sivanandhan is a symbolic representation of the police force which stood strong with their leader.

One of the interesting facets of the books is the division of each chapter into three parts viz. A,   B and C. Where A explains the concept, part B gives Chanakya’s perspective and part C uses D Sivanandhan personal experiences on putting the secret into action.

Part A which provides overview for the secret draws learning from the real life of examples leaders like Dr. APJ Kalam, JRD Tata and real life scenarios like the 2012 fire at mantralaya.

Part B elaborates the concept as taught and presented by Chanakya in the Arthashashtra. Each secret is broken down into principles & elements that help one to decipher the secret into the realms of reality.

Part C then captures the principles and elements in practice through personal experiences of D. Sivanandhan.  It delves on those aspects that shaped D. Sivanandhan’s evolution into a leader to reckon with. 

The following are the glimpses of the Chanakya’s Seven Secrets of Leadership.

The First Secret – Swami: The Leader

This chapter addresses who is the leader and helps one understand why Chanakya places so much emphasis on leader. It illustrates the influence a leader exercises on his followers and his people thus highlighting the importance of a leader. Qualities that help one become an ideal leader have also been explained.

The Second Secret – Amatya: The Manager

Amatya is none but the manager in the corporate world. A leader at any given point of time may be playing the role of leader or a manager. The chapter highlights the important factor that a lone wheel does not turn and no leadership can be successfully carried out without the help of associates. Hence the significance of an Amatya. The secret helps one understand not only the importance of counsel (managers) but also how to choose and nurture them.

The Third Secret – Janpada: Citizens or Customers

The Janpada are the citizens of the country. Without them, the kingdom is not complete. So is the case in corporate world, without customers or clients no business is complete.  The third secret clarifies that the happiness of the customer / client cannot be achieved without good governance. The most important factor in achieving this is imbibing this secret is to understand how the citizens (customers/ clients) think.

The Fourth Secret – Durg: Infrastructure

The Durg symbolizes fortified cities that protects its citizens and also gives them ample scope for development. One of the most important lessons to be drawn from the fort infrastructure is to plan for best and worst case scenario and be prepared for any situation. The business world also requires good infrastructure to run its businesses successfully. The definition of durg may change according to business but definitely cannot be ignored.  In today’s business world the durg also covers the digital world.  The chapter presents the qualities a good infrastructure must encompass.

The Fifth Secret – Kosha: Treasury

Kosha is the treasury that keeps the kingdom going. Chanakya emphasised that the king should have a sound understanding of the economics; rather it is the first subject a king should learn. Good control and management of treasury leads to prosperity of the king, the citizens and the kingdom. The chapter then goes on to present model called “Four Stages of Wealth” which is the essence of all finances and presents qualities of good treasury. Simply put all undertakings are dependent first on the treasury and that’s why the leader should look to the treasury first.

The Sixth Secret – Dand: The Team

The sixth pillar of kingdom is the army which showcases the power of a country and protects the citizens from external threats. Besides fighting outsiders, the army is also utilized during emergencies such as floods or to solve internal crises, as in the case of civil wars. The army hear signifies the team. Again going by the premise one man alone cannot fight a battle. It’s always a team that wins a war. The important lesson to draw from the sixth secret is as the captain of the team, the leader is always given credit for the team’s achievements. Yet, the leader should never forget to share the credit with team members.

The Seventh Secret – Mitra: The Ally or Consultant

Even the most powerful king requires a mitra, for the friend is with you through thick and thin, in good times and bad. The seventh pillar stresses the importance of the friend, philosopher and guide on whom one can depend upon to remain true. Citing examples from the Ramayana and Mahabharata it points out that an ally can make or break you. It also provides guidelines and qualities to look for whilst choosing the ally or consultants.

Each chapter has verses from Arthashastra as point of reference for explaining and elaborating the secrets. How the seven secrets connect is succinctly put by the authors right at the start, “A happy kingdom consists on an ideal king (Swami) as a leader, guided by able ministers (amatya), who takes care of the citizens (janpada), providing them good infrastructure and facilities (durg), making sure the treasury (kosha) of the state and the people is always full, which is protected by and able army (dand) and helped by good allies (mitra).

The simple language makes it an interesting read whilst the examples from D. Sivanandhan’s life provides a first-hand experience into leadership challenges  experienced by police department. The book also provides anecdotes and incidents from different walks of life to make point which help the reader to connect easily with the book and its ideas.