The True Believer by Eric Hoffer

This slim book (175 pages), first published in 1951 , became a classic in social psychology and tells us how a person becomes a fanatic and what the dynamics of a mass movement are .It is very provocative and insightful , and is as relevant today as it was in 1951.I enjoyed reading it and benefited immensely from it .                                                     
        Early Christianity was very outspoken  in its antagonism  toward the family .When one of His  disciples asked leave to go and bury his father,Jesus said to him:"Follow me;and let the dead bury their dead."Disruption of the family creates a responsiveness to the appeal of mass movements.Hitler made full use of"the society ladies thirsting for adventure, sick of their empty lives, no longer getting a kick out of love affairs." A rising mass movement preaches the immediate hope.Later, as the movement  comes into  possession of power,the emphasis is shifted  to the distant hope.
                         It requires an exceptional leader to mobilise existing attitudes and impulses into a drive of  mass movement . In such leaders , we do not find exceptional intelligence, noble character and originality  indispensable , or even   desirable."The main requirements seem to be : audacity and a joy in defiance;an iron will;a fanatical conviction that he is in possession of the one and only truth faith in his destiny and luck; a capacity for passionate hatred;contempt for the present;a cunning estimate of human nature;a delight in symbols , spectacles and ceremonials;unbounded brazenness which finds expression in a disregard of consistency and fairness;a capacity for winning and holding the utmost loyalty of a group of able lieutenants. The leader has to be practical and a realist, yet must talk the language of the visionary and the idealist .       
                              The book is about the active phase of mass movements.This phase is dominated by the true believer-the man of fanatical faith who is ready to sacrifice his life for a holy cause.When we lead a selfless life , we gain enormously in self -esteem.'The vanity of the selfless, even those who practice utmost humility,is boundless." ''True Believer attempts successfully to trace the genesis of such a fanatic and outline his nature.The opposite of religious fanatic is not the fanatical atheist but the gentle cynic  who cares not  whether there is God or not .The atheist is a religious person .The fanatic mostly comes  from the ranks of the non-creative men of words.He is often ready to sacrifice relatives and friends for his holy cause.A movement is pioneered by men of words, materialized by fanatics and consolidated by men of action .
                               A very insightful book on fanatics , true believers and mass movements.

The Invention of Solitude by Paul Auster

The book is all about solitude , invisible style of life, memory and its relationship with our relationships .If you are looking for  a light entertainment , this novel is not for you .But if you are ready to stretch your mind  a little , it will grow upon you .I liked the book .It has two parts .The first part is 'Portrait of an Invisible Man'.It is about the elusive  life of author's father ,and his feelings after the death of his father.The second part is 'The Book of Memory'.It is about the author and his relationship to his son .The first part is easy to understand and enjoy .The second part is more complex(complicated) , but once you begin to understand it , the rewards are higher .Obviously , the second part takes more time to read .The first part is 73 pages  while the second part is 112 pages long.

                                      Does this sound familiar? "Ït was never possible for him to be where he was.For as long as he lived , he was somewhere else, between here and there.But never really here.And never really there".The author looks at the old pictures left by his father and learns new things about him .And how he learns about the fact that his grandmother murdered his grand father and how and why .For his father , money was not an elixir but an antidote,the small vial of medicine you carry in your pocket when you go out into the jungle-just in case you are bitten by  a poisonous snake .

                                                   The book of memory starts with with a quote from The Adventures of Pinocchio by Collodi.Solitude is crushing .Solitude and memory are related.Only   in the darkness of solitude, the work of memory begins ..Solitude as sung by Billie Holiday:Ïn my solitude ,you haunt me/With reveries of days gone by/In my solitude , you taunt me?with memories , that never die . .. ".Depth of solitude is equally the depth of silence.Stillness of solitudes is almost heart breaking.The act of writing is an act of memory.The idea of  work gives  purpose to his life..He is fond of Anne Frank(Diary of a young  girl).
                                      Paul Auster writes from the depths of his heart and soul .I recommend you to read this novel.

How Macaulay is still shaping modern India

As a member of Indian Administrative service  since 1980 , I  had been looking for a long time a book on Macaulay  , to know about the man who was  responsible , more than any one else , in the creation of Indian Civil Service,drafting of elegant Indian Penal Code , introduced English as a medium of education at grassroots.I am happy that I finally found the book I was looking for .Zareer Masani  has written this absolutely delightful and profound book on Macaulay (Macaulay:Pioneer of India's Modernization, 2012,Random House India:, 269 pages ,Hard cover).After reading  it , I love Macaulay , and I hate him at the same time .Born on October 25,1800 , he died on December28,1859.

                        A few things strike the reader as one progresses through the book ;

1.Macaulay was  always reading  books inluding classics and popular novels.His favourite author was Jane Austen.He rated Northanger Abbey higher than all the works of Dickens and Pliny put together.He had a daily reading session before breakfast. "Ï would rather be a poor man in a garret with plenty of books than a king who did not love reading.".

2.Macaulay never married .He loved his sisters , Margaret and Hannah.

3.Macaulay was a reviewer , essayist and writer.The Lays of Ancient Rome is one of his best remembered books..He was in constant communication with the editor of the Edinburgh Review.

4.He firmly believed in the education of the governed."To trade with civilized men is infinitely more profitable than to govern savages."

5.He was a Westernizer as against Orientalists.

6.If one person is to be named who was responsible for creation of  professional Indian Civil Service , recruited on the basis of an examination , it is undoubtedly Macaulay.

9.He regularly wrote his daily diary.

                           Macaulay was closely involved  in the drafting of The Charter Act of 1833.It effectively nationalized the East India Company and created government of British India(Governor -General -in -Council, based in Calcutta).This Council was accountable to the British Crown..Macaulay was nominated Law Member of the Governor-General's Council in August , 1833.

                         Macaulay ridiculed Indians and  Hindu Gods.He described Ganesh",ä fat man with a paunch like Daniel Lambert's(the fattest man in England), an elephant's head and trunk , a dozen hands , and a serpent's tail" And this is what he felt about Indian music:"the national music of India is most deplorably bad . . .Whether the boatmen or the bearers make the more horrible noise , whether the vocal or instrumental music be the worse , I cannot decide."

                  Macaulay unleashed his famous Education Minute in 1835(when he was about 35 years old) in which he advocated for the need  for English as opposed to Indian Vernacular languages.In this he set the objective of creating a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern ;a class of persons, Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions , in morals, and in intellect.Here is his much quoted dictum:"who can deny that a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole literature of India and Arabia"."Public money was henceforth to be spent on imparting to the native population a knowledge of English literature and science through the medium of English language.

                             Macaulay was appointed President of Law Commission for framing a comprehensive Criminal Code for the British India .They prepared the draft of Penal code by 1837.But it was only in 1860 , 22 years after it was written  , that the India Penal Code was finally enacted into law .It came into operation in 1862.It was war of Independence(The Great Mutiny) of 1857 which brought out the urgent need for enacting the new Criminal Code.

                                       Macaulay was a member of the Parliamentary Select Committee which drafted the India Bill of 1853.Its most important provision was the recruitment by open and competitive examination of Indian Civil servants.After passing the Act in 1853, the government set up a special committee with Macaulay as Chairman  , to supervise the implementation of the new system of civil service exams.The first advertisements for the new exam appeared in the London Times in January , 1854.

                     Macaulay has made India the world's second largest English speaking country , second only to the United States of America.

                      Zareer Masani has done  rigorous research  and done full justice to Macaulay in this first biography of this very influential and outstanding shaper of modern India .The book is fascinating and reveals very lucidly how Macaulay is still shaping India , and will continue to shape India .His influence is for ever.

Over , a novel by Margaret Forster

Publishers blurb says that it is a novel that" pushes into the heart of grief".At first , I too thought so .Yes , it is about  love , loss ,grief and pain .But slowly , it grew on me .It starts with grief but that is only one  thread .It is  more about alienation .It is about what  happens  when you expect warmth and kindness from some one close to you( when you  confront the death of someone you love) and  the other one does not come any where near that expectation ."He  didn't take me in his arms first, he didn't present this appaling news any better than his sister had done .From the very minute he heard  he separated himself.We were never together."

                    Happy  memories  continue to bind people but memories don't stretch into future.Is it really necessary to go to the roots of what happened?Does   finding  the truth why the death or loss took place become more important than kindness? " Ï felt angry with Don.He has become so arrogant in his despair and misery, he really thinks  he has been marked out  for suffering  far more than any one else and that this entitles him to receive, but not give , sympathy."

      When alienation begins , phone calls are replaced by emails , and then emails by occassional texts  and then it begins to near the end . You don't  even feel guilty about enjoying yourself.Alienation does bring the feeling of loss of romance and sex but you ignore it.Concern becomes a luxury you can afford." Don was in hospital.Slowly ., on the long drive to hospital, I had begun to feel anxious and troubled about Don and what might have happened , but there was certain luxury about my concern.I could  afford it .This was awful to admit, but I didn't have to admit it to anyone but myself.

            You begin to feel jealous about how affectionate your children are towards the other ."  I had a feeling of alarm:Don had found her,Don would keep her.She would not find a telephone and ring me."He can't be completely out of my life but I don't want him at the centre.

                   It is one of the benefits we bereaved bestow on other people-we make them feel lucky .Alienation is as much painful as grief , if not more.

                                 The book ends with a hope in spite of despair:"I have recovered a little , I will recover more."

 I liked the  novel for its profound  and powerful expression of death , loss , grief , alienation and flickers of hope .

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

First things first.The Bluest Eye  moved me and will  haunt   me   for a long , long time .It is a masterpiece , and the first  work of fiction by Toni Morrison.It was  published in 1970 . I strongly recommend you to read it (172 pages).

                     It is the story of  Pecola, a little black girl who yearns for the blue eyes of a little white girl .This was her idea of beauty.But she was a little, poor , innocent , black girl and was subjected to a demonization process. Her innocence and faith were as unproductive as lust and despair of others around her .When the society around her was  unproductive , she could not have become a beautiful girl with the bluest eyes.

                   It is not easy to understand the grief of a little girl who becomes the victim of rape.Her friends fail her.They avoid her .Her guilt  sanctifies her friends and in their hypocrisy , they want to feel clean and beautiful.They are polite but not compassionate .Her poverty keeps her friends generous .What a waste of a precious girl by a society that is so unequal , pollutes , self-serving and indifferent !

                      Toni Morrison completely succeeds , in her poetic style, in compelling us to think to make ourselves  better human beings , and to be truly compassionate to the girls who become victims  ans suffer because of  others.

                     

                                  

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes is my first book of 2013.Vintage 2012   paperback edition  has 150 pages.Let me say that I could not understand the book  fully  in the first reading .But I had a sense that I had in my hands a great book which says many things on many planes  , depending on  the interpretation the reader provides not only to the facts but also to the meaning of the whole book .

                            It is the story of Tony Webster, in his sixties.It is a story partly based on memory and partly on  partial documentation .After all , what is  understanding ?It is partly based on our memory of facts , and partly on the documents which we may see or possess.(I recall my  resolution of the new year to base my decisions , views and statements on evidence.)

                               The key lines are:"You still don't get it.You never did, and you never will.So stop even trying."When we recollect many events and relationships of our past , we think we know about them correctly .But it  may not be so .Not that we are stupid .Tony was quite intelligent and mature .But understanding our own motives and others who come close to us , is not so simple .

                            The sense of an ending is about the sense that our illusions or self delusions  may appear to  have come to an end .But it is only the sense of an ending .It not an ending .Our understanding is never complete .

Julian Barnes is a mesmerising  writer.This book is his masterpiece, and richly deserved  Man Booker Prize 2011, which it got .

                   I will reread it in 2013 only .I strongly recommend you to read it .

Obstacles faced by Leaders (2.)

I wrote a blogpost on this topic in October , 2012 .It was written after I had read the book "Why Leaders Can't Lead:The Unconscious Conspiracy continues"(Warren Bennis).I had an opportunity to think through this vital , topical and important subject when Bankers Institute of Rural Development(BIRD), Lucknow invited me to address  a group of Senior Bankers on this very subject .I found that I have a lot more to say  .Also ,I had the opportunity of discussing it with three of my friends, who are esteemed leaders in their own right .I share  below some of the  thoughts I included in my address.

                                     Two most important obstacles before leaders today are related to vision.The first is lack of vision ,unclear vision , fractured vision or unstable/changing vision .This happens due to inadequate tenures and frequent changes at the top , leading to instability in vision .It is partly a result of election cycles, political appointments and changing political leadership .

                                   The second obstacle relates to inadequate sharing of vision .The investment of time and resources required in building a shared vision is not there .Most of the leaders do not realize the importance and essentiality of sharing the vision .A shared vision is different from the personal vision of leader.Peter M . Senge has adequately emphasized the need for building a shared vision in his book The Fifth Discipline , and I do not wish to stress this point again .Those who are interested are strongly advised to read  or re-read The Fifth Discipline .Apart from leader , followers have their own visions and do not want to change their vision easily ,thanks to individualism inherited by our generation .The absence of a shared vision is the biggest obstacle faced by a leader .

                                       The third obstacle faced by a  leader is their distance from the reality .Most of the leaders live in an unreal world, where they believe that a person in India(New Delhi) can live on six rupees a day.Leaders live in a world made and created by advertizing , media , Movies , fashion, technology and shopping malls.Leaders donot touch the lives of living people they want to lead.The result is a long distance/chasm  between the leader and the followers.
                                 It is debatable whether bureaucracy is always an obstacle for the leader. They have expertise and understanding but also develop entrenched interests. .But generally speaking , to begin with , bureaucracy can be an obstacle .Bureaucracy has set , laid down procedures and processes , and these are not always result oriented .Some of these are based on historical contexts and some are irrelevant and unduly complicated and dilatory , requiring reforms .In addition , bureaucracy is  divided into departments , with  narrow focus .These  organization men and women do work in silos , posing as an obstacle before a leader.
                                          Most of the leaders I talked to , complained about poor work ethics in India.It is difficult to find human resources with dedication to work , professional ethics , punctuality and integrity .There is a natural resistance to change .
                                        Many organizations are closed , and with fixed mindsets of employees.They do not look for opportunities and not open .Such organization pose  big obstacles for leaders.
                                          A leader  generally confronts workers who are demotivated and have become cynical and dis-illusioned.They do not easily trust the intentions of the leader , thereby posing a big challenge.Leaders , to have a short cut , rely excessively on extrinsic rewards and motivators.They fail to look at intrinsic sources of motivation like respect and high expectations.
                                       Most often , leaders choose their Ghostly Doubles as their core assistants .This is known as Doppelganger Phenomena.The selected assistants are from the same stock in attitudes  and ideas .This creates a band of Yesmen and Yes women around leaders , resulting in often wrong decisions .Assistants should be as diverse as possible .This diversity leads to more mature decision making .
                                        A leader faces obstacles from his colleagues and bosses as well .Colleagues may not accept his/her leadership and may feel that they are superior to the leader .Bosses also sometimes compete with the leader if she or he is more charismatic.Sometimes , bosses may have a vision or a view or values which is different from the leaders'view/vision/values .This may  prove to be a big obstacle for the leader .
                           A leader also has to face organizational politics as well as interse conflicts. and ego issues among individuals , groups and cliques.When the going gets tough , the leader begins to fear failure .As a result , the agenda for  personal survival dominates over organizational agenda.
                             A leader may suffer from a burn-out  as a result of being overwhelmed by the work load,the frustrations,the stress and the demands.As a result , the leader may no longer care.The leader must learn to recognize the signs of burnout . Another stage is that of burn-down when the leader  experiences the loss of passion or intensity or enthusiasm due to familiarity or long service.Burn-down is not as obvious as burn-out.Both are very formidable obstacle for a leader.
                                   The leader has some power . The more power he /she has the less is questioning by the followers.As  a result , the leader begins to acquire power at the expense of the greater community .There is "Know it all"attitude .The leader has a tendency to become overbearing , presumptuous, arrogant and full of hubris.There is less tolerance for constructive criticism.Humility begins to decline , and complacency takes over .The leader begins to lose the right to lead.Some leaders have an obsession with bottomlines and profits.They treat workers as tools, and care less for the customers.
                                             Often , the leader fails to live by his own rules , standards and stated value .This hypocrisy is a big obstacle faced by the leader.
                                              There is always a loneliness at the top .The leader has great difficulty in socialization .Too much familiarity and social interaction with professional colleagues and followers  can lead to problems at work place .
                               Litigation , conflicting and often ambiguous court judgements can lead to the replacement of expertise, and finally to sub-optimal decisions .Labour laws , union actions can further affect the working and decision making .Objective feedback about the performance may not be available .All these prove obstacle for  the leader.
                              The leader may have the inability to keep up with the young, emotionally ,socially ,occupationally and technologically.New technologies need technology savvy leaders.
                              In India, especially in public sector(to some extent , in private sector too),there is general lack of accountability regarding performance .There is a general inability to punish or correct for non-performance , and even for intentionally delinquent actions.Poor performers are either moved sideways or upwards, rather than being turned out of the organizations .
                                    Having listed the above , rather long list of obstacles faced by leaders , let me hasten to add that a true leader firmly believes that there is always a better way of doing every thing , and that all obstacles can be surmounted and eventually make you a better leader .
                                      

My Guiding Principles in Professional Life

             

It is easy to talk about a principled life but as one  chooses to work in the real world , full of contradictions and paradoxes  , it becomes increasingly difficult to  choose the principles which can guide us effectively .I have been in search of a set of su
1.The "Rule of Law"and not any individual is supreme .
2.Maintenance of standards of conduct , speech , behaviour and dress.
3.Evidence based  discussions , decisions and judgements .
4.Taking responsibility .
5.Truth and uncompromising integrity .
6.Fairness, justice and impartialty.
7.Caring and responsiveness.
8.Political neutrality.
9.Anonymity.
10.Bias for action .
11.Focus on action and not on fruits of action .
12.Freedom from prejudice .Openness.
13.Non-controlling and non-possessiveness in relationships .
14.Steadfastness , persistence , perseverance , patience and determination.
15.Forward looking ;Learning from past .
16.Learning continuously and for life.
17.Creativity and innovation .
18.Consultative style of working .
19.Eternal vigilance and non-complacency.
20.Self-awareness and self-knowledge.
                        It is my firm belief that we should lead a professional life based on principles .Only in cases where our principles  come in conflict with  caring for others that we need to carefully  consider the situation and decide .This I have dealt with separately in one of my earlier blogpost "Caring and not the principles . ." 

From Self-organization to Self-mastery

To organize self we have to be caring towards self .It means weeding and destroying what is not needed and will not be needed in future.It also means finding adequate space for what is needed to be retained, and also arranging them in such a way that we can retrieve whatever we have stored in the shortest  time .                            

              Self-organizing is a discipline.It involves clarity of mind , practice , patience and self-control.When done regularly at frequent intervals , self-organizing leads to self-mastery.Peter M. Senge has described Self-mastery as one of the five essential disciplines for leadership as well as for building a learning organization.Self organization is a process of self awareness and leads to self mastery.It helps us to cleanse our cob webs and bring to us clarity of mind ,thought and purpose.Human mind or nature is not easily subject to order.It has to be trained and disciplined.There are layers and layers of organizing.When we do second order organizing , we go into the deeper layers of  documents and materials.

Organizing requires us to know what is really important to us that we would like to retain and expand .What we would like to categorize as trash or redundant and would destroy.A clear understanding of what is trash and what is important enables us to know what kind of  our associated actions have so far affected the world and what have not been so .This also makes us understand our current reality and stand on various things and issues.Self organizing should be developed into a life long habit , an attitude and a way of living.                

                     Self-organizing increases our efficiency , proficiency and effectiveness,thereby making us professionally competent.When self-organizing becomes a regular life long habit ,attitude and discipline,it leads to self-mastery.Self-organizing gives us satisfaction and happiness.It makes us realize how naïve and ignorant we have been , and gives us a sense of confidence.Is organizing ,like consistency ,hobgoblin of small minds?No , because organizing expands our minds by the process of creative destruction. When we begin to organize , our mind has to discriminate between what is needed to be destroyed and what is needed to be retained and for how long.When we organize,our mind is undistracted and is free from lower level thinking.Organizing empowers us by  enabling us to focus on the broader horizon.                    

                    It is necessary to review our complete inventory every 3 months with strict regularity.In a way ,every review offers us a new start,a new opportunity to begin at the beginning.It brings us closer to our purpose ,by enabling us to weed out the trash and the redundant.
       Basis of organizing should be logic and not memory .Documents should be retained and arranged on the basis of a logic,for our memory is fragile .The logic of self-organizing starts with questioning what is actionable and what is non-actionable. Non-actionable documents are of three kinds;
1)Trash:Those documents  which are not needed, and which need to be destroyed.
2)Material in incubation:Those documents which need to be retained.Some may be needed to be retained for an uncertain period of time while others for a fixedor known period.
3)Reference materials:Some materials like books are needed to be retained in archives and library.Such documents are general reference and not more than one or two on a topic.We need to establish norms and time of retention  and destroying of different types of documents.
x x x x x x x x x x xx xx x x x x x xx xx x x xx x x x xx x x xx x xx
I decided to organize all my papers, books , certificates, writings , pictures and reports, which I had accumulated in the last 30 years.I devoted about two hours daily for about sixty days .As I  overcame my initial inertia and impatience ,I began to feel a sense of self-control , self-awareness , satisfaction  leading to a better clarity about my purpose and life goals.I thought , I was approaching  towards what Senge has called Self-mastery.I know ,I am no where near that stage ,but I certainly know that self-organizing is one very effective approach to Self-mastery .
  
                    

Freedom from Prejudice:The Cornerstone of Leadership

         

A leader must be value oriented and socially sensitive with tolerance and respect for diversity , and lead her/his organization to assume higher and still higher social responsibilities .If one studies  likely trends in leadership for the coming decades, one will find that in business , government or politics ,  diversity and social responsibilty  are two things  that  will  occupy increasing resources,priority  and attention .It is just the result of  evolutionary dynamics .Prejudices  can be based on race , religion , caste, region or physical or mental disabilities or any other factor. For example , prejudices against  women , jews , Africans , certain castes  and many other groups still exist in different countries.There is a wide spread prejudice against persons with certain disabilities.To be able to be an effective leader in such a world , a leader must not only  be personally free from all kinds of prejudices but also ensure that  members of the organization she or he is leading also rise above them.And this needs to be both in theory and practice .It is not easy .That is why , real leaders are very few .The rest are just duplicates .

                 " All overblown and generalized  prejudgments become prejudices if they are not reversible when exposed to new knowledge." so says Gordon  W. Allport in his classic 1954 book "The Nature of Prejudice"For those who have not heard of Allport , he was a leading social psychologist of 20th century.From 1930 onwards , he was a Professor of psychology at Harvard .Born in Indiana  in1897 , he died in 1967 at the age of 70.
A prejudice has two ingredients:An attitude of favour or disfavour  , and an overgeneralized belief .A prejudice , when practiced , results in discrimination.Discrimination comes about when we deny to a person or group equality of treatment .For example , it becomes discriminating when we exclude people from our neighbourhood, school ,employment or organization or country.Differential treatment based on individual qualities are not discrimination but those based on ethnic categorization are discrimination.To quote the UNO:"Discrimination includes any conduct based on a distinction made on grounds of natural or social categories, which have no relation either to individual capacities or merits or to the concrete behaviour of individual persons."It is born out of ignorance , superstition and unjust customs .

To some extent,each one of us is prejudiced against many things.We judge in favour of the values we hold, we defend our values and ways of living,we defend our values with pride and we reject those who oppose our values.

                   Is there such a thing as national character?The answer is yes, though objective studies  about national character are few in number.But it is important to distinguish between the real national character and the stereotypes , images that people have about national character.The Japanese have images of Americans as" hypocrite, materialistic,coarse, self-indulgent and luxury loving."Images are a mix of facts and previously held values and frames of reference.It is important to study images because people act in terms of these.It is important to correct false images because they add to misunderstanding and conflicts.Understanding images of national character as well as the genuine differences in national character, are important for leaders in this era of global markets and  increasingly unified world /humanity.                

       Prejudice leads to autistic thinking  and wrong decisions or sticking to old views.Autistic thinking is contrary to reasoning or directed thinking , and is irrational .It takes our thoughts to self-indulgent fantasy and does not advance them .In fact , we do not get anywhere.The whole process is self-serving .Our decisions , as a result , are in accordance with our preconceptions and self-interest.They are not objective .We tend to justify or rationalize our autistic thinking and do not like to admit that our thinking is autistic .

   If prejudice , by definition , continues despite exposure to new knowledge , what are the remedies?Can I overcome my own prejudices, or do I need external assistance .?Allport has  suggested  seven ways to  remedy prejudices .

1.Legislation  for  protection of victims against discrimination .

2.Formal educational methods.

3.Contact and acquaintance programs.

4.Group retraining methods.

5.Mass media.

6.Exhortation .

7.Individual therapy.

Formal education involves  imparting inter-cultural education .Evaluation studies have shown that inter-cultural education does result in lowering the prejudices.To my mind , this lends very strong support to inclusive education .Contact and acquaintance programs  make for friendliness and mutual respect .."Whatever makes for equal-status relationships and for more intimate acquaintance is likely to make for increased tolerance."            Group retraining is essentially a study of techniques of democratic leadership .It is a training program that helps people to improve their skills in  human relations.Mass media  ,films, publicity campaigns and propaganda do help in reducing  prejudices .

Another method is exhortation , preachment , admonishment and ethical talks .The best method to  reduce prejudices and change attitudes is individual psychotherapy.The individual needs to feel the need for approaching a counsellor.Though very effective , psychotherapy can reach only a small number of people .It needs to be practiced along with other methods of reducing prejudices. 

            A leader with prejudices cannot remain leader for long without destroying herself or himself ,and the organization she or he is leading.A "prejudiced leader" is an oxymoron (Yet none of the leaders except very few are completely free from prejudices.).Such a person is unfit to lead in a globalized world, with increasing demands to deal with diversity.With autistic thinking , she or he has poor ability to make correct decisions , be just and fair, to inspire and motivate.Such a person  wastes tremendous energy and resources of the organization and society and weakens the efforts for unity.She or he will not be able to enforce  with speed and firmness orders (from the top or courts )against  prejudices and discrimination.Such a leader cannot have tolerance and respect for the members of organization and other stakeholders  with diverse beliefs.
          India , with its million mutinies(To quote V S Naipaul)and rich diversity poses  great challenges as well as opportunities for leaders  to achieve the goals of equality, equity and growth.This necessarily makes it imperative that all persons in organizations (including business and non-governmental) of all kinds develop a culture of tolerance and respect  for diversity and freedom from prejudices .They should increasingly and deliberately place themselves in situations where they are required to handle successfully more and more diversity.This requires modernization of thoughts , beliefs and attitudes towards diverse groups  with their diverse character , attitudes , beliefs and values.In an organizational context , this means giving  special attention  to diversity and freedom from prejudice ,while  recruiting , doing placements,and designing,and implementing training programmes for the employee and top managers.