Personal Mastery of a Leader

Etched into my memory was a mentor from many years ago. His demonstration of his personal mastery in leadership is still the one I confer with within my mind. Friends call him YC because he gained fame and fortune when the British army awarded him the contract to supply them cafeteria food that bore his initials. But these lessons from this leader of men and business were when he ran the biggest private bank of his time in the far-east.

The Personal Power to Inspire

I’ve read many books about the great leaders and their ability to inspire many people to follow their vision. In fact their dreams, their desires became their followers’ too.

When YC speaks, he imparts his message through an air of power and feelings. I mean, you will literally FEEL his message in your heart and it seems that a telepathic message was delivered straight to the listeners’ mind. I find myself seldom hearing his words but listening to and feeling his message. Speaking to an audience, he speaks slowly and purposefully. Every word resonates. There is a command when he takes the stage that is seldom witnessed. He responds to answers with the same accolade that the listeners afford him.

In his bank, you note the loyalty and respect from his staff. There is a contentedness yet the desire to excel from each employee, everyone of whom he calls colleague. Now, this is not a small bank. The main head office takes up more than ten floors of a premium fifty story building which they own in a downtown location. Including the branches over the region over three thousand employees call him sir and friend. His personal mastery reached out to how the people around him love and respect him. When there is an illness or bereavement in an employee’s family, he becomes the compassionate corporate master and a paid leave of absence with insured benefits for the employee in question is given. Gifts are given for the Chinese New Year time and weddings regardless of race or religion. Such generosity is usually unheard of in the western world. Yet, YC’s bank and other related holdings continue to shine with remarkable decades of continued high profitability. Bank shareholders hold no grudge or complaints and continue to support his tenure as the group CEO.

His bearing demands respect when he wants to or extreme mirth when his closest friends, also my mentors are together. Visits to and from heads of states brought out the great statesman in him. He speaks and they listen with the similar respect accorded him as he would them. They confer as equals for the most part, but they always value his opinions as a serious consultation. You can see the secretaries taking copious notes. The attendees often seek him out after the official meetings for a tete-a-tete. But he usually defers such small talk and invites them to the lavish evening dinners he hosts for them.

The Mastermind of Great Friends

Birds of a feather flock together and gang together for survival. But the wealthy do it for building greater success than a single one ever could. They become a Mastermind. This is one of his great weapons and secrets for his great achievements, personal mastery and leadership qualities.

There is an aura that people have that make them want to get together for the same purpose. That tribal mentality need or want is everywhere. Most people will go with the tide. Go to a race course and you will find the punters of all sorts. Why will some people shop at Harrods, and others will only buy a Rolex watch? Billionaires are no different but they belong to a much smaller and select group. When they become fast friends, their ability to work together jived to beyond the point of most peoples’ comprehensions. They naturally become a Mastermind.

With friends and the times of pure relaxation and fun, you’ll see a very different aspect to the man. He and his closest friends often get together for fun and games. In fact they confer with each other and deal with their business issues through their fantastic masterminding. Yet, they have such a great time. And yes, when with them, I was expected to be one of them. I was most flattered at first that such great wealthy leaders of the industry would include me. But their purpose was to develop me to be one of them.

Developing Personal Mastery and Leadership with a Mastermind

The Mastermind is when a group of more than two likeminded people get together for the same purpose to think of answers to problems or solve issues together. YC and my mentors much prefer to have 5 people in the group. This is because there are enough people here to form a very powerful but closely knit group who come together for their mutual benefit. To paraphrase Napoleon Hill, for example, when 2 like minded people get together the result of the two ideas will create a greater number than double the output of ideas. This is the same when three, four, or five minds get together.

A single, well developed and well educated person who understands and knows how to build a good business can only get so far. However, when a true mastermind is formed, the power of the melded minds and the actions they can take now become geometrically multiplied. Very successful people know this. The lone ranger is no match for such a group. In fact as with the mental power developed, so too their wealth or power of control within any industry or even a country. Now, you would understand the aura of power these great statesmen and leaders of industry seem to have and hold sway over the populace.

But, masterminding with these older gentlemen was probably the most stimulating and educational times of my life. I learnt more from and developed a greater understanding of the business world than going to university ever did. In fact I will declare that my personal development; in fact what I have learnt about personal mastery and leadership was most fully developed by and by being with these great leaders.

Note: This is a synopsis related by a friend about a great mentor of great wealth and self confidence. What did this man appear to be to the young callow youth?