THIRD INGREDIENT OF LEADERSHIP – EMPATHY

THIRD INGREDIENT OF LEADERSHIP
EMPATHY
BY SHIREEN NAQVI

The 3rd important quality that a leader must have is EMPATHY, in Urdu it means HUM AHSAASI, which means to feel for others. To become a leader you need to have the qualities of EMPATHY. We must feel for others when they are sad or happy, this is a bit different from SYMPATHY. Till the time we do not feel for others problems, we won’t feel bad about it and will not come into action.

For e.g. If I go outside and a man meets with an accident and he is lying on the road bleeding and I coolly walk away, then I do not have the leadership quality or even if I have the quality I am not using it, but if I stop and help the injured person tear off my dupatta and tie it around the persons head, then why did I do this? Which was this power that had stopped me and drew my attention towards the injured person? What was the inner feeling that brought me to motivation and that very feeling is called EMPATHY.

The more you have this feeling the more you would be successful, Mr. Abdul Sattar Eidhi is a classic example who has passed 8th standard only but the amount of cars and helicopters that he has even the world’s richest person would not have. He spends Rs80, 00000 a day and how much do we spend even if being an MBA, do we have that much money to spend. How did Mr. Eidhi reach to that level, if you visit the EIDHI CENTRE a poor lady contributes Rs20/- which could be her monthly saving that she is giving to Mr. Abdul Sattar Eidhi, as she alone cannot help the flood victims, but she also knows that Mr. Eidhi can do it.

From where does this credibility come? And how promises are kept? Mr. Eidhi isn’t worried about his children only but is also worried about the children living in Iraq and Afghanistan. We must broaden the circle of Empathy or keep it to our self and just think about what people would say about us and my home must be clean and to hell with others.

Once when I Shireen Naqvi was sitting with Mr. Eidhi he received a phone call from China and he was speaking to the person as if he was purchasing one KG of Pakodas, whereas he was purchasing 20 ambulances from China and he was speaking so softly, with time this becomes a practice

and also very common. You sort of become like a magnet and all the universal powers start focusing towards you provided you feel for others, be a part of their happiness and sadness as if its your own problem or celebration.