Be humble. Be open. Learn more

This story is about Baan. Not the ERP company that existed, but a real human being I met 18 months back. Baan is a certified trekking guide. The story is about how an unassuming person taught and reinforced a few tenets in me.

I met Baan during a hiking trip in Meghalaya. People who know me are aware that I am not an adventurous guy. But living with two adventurous people at home(wife and son) I lost the majority and agreed on this trip. I have done some treks lazily in and around Bangalore, but Meghalaya was different. Every day a new route with increasing difficulties. I managed the first 2 days: unscathed.

Baan took over the 3rd day. 'Let's trek down this path to reach the river’, Baan told. As all treks started easy, Baan engaged in good conversations about the flora while he helped us hike steeper. Finally, in 25-30 mins we were down. Baan was visibly happy. He said, ‘Usually my guests do this in 40-45 mins. You guys are good, good job.'

One rare occasion of someone commending my work, outside work :) I was happy. We sat at the stream, wetting our feet. Baan sat near us. The river was mostly dry, the bedrocks mostly visible.

'Actually, there are some good scenes landscapes ahead. If you guys are rested I can show you that.' His eyes revealed good scenes ahead. We walked with him, climbing rocks, passing rivulets, splashing water. The riverbed was almost nude. But it offered some exciting climbs and falls to keep us challenged. We reached the point where Baan told, wonderful scenes as he explained. We took some pictures.

But we knew the river did not end there. Pointing his index finger in the downstream direction Baan said, ‘Do you know what is there? A single stream waterfall. The highest in India – all 1115 feet high. another 200-300ms we are there. Since we are here, you should take a pic and video from that point.’ Frankly, I was motivated. remember I was the most non-adventurous guy. We moved on. The trek was difficult we had to squeeze our bodies, go behind rocks into some short tunnels, put our body weights on the hands and pull ourselves up, climb and get down. And finally, we reached the edge. On the way, Baan was telling us the heart-wrenching story behind the waterfall's name - Noh Kali kai. We reached the edge. Needless to say, it was breathtaking. Probably one of the best scenes I have ever seen. Thanks to Baan.

Now, why did I write about this personal episode here - on a business networking site? there is a reason.

Replay Baan in your mind. A leader who is taking on a not so skilled team, with a particularly not so motivated person. He did the right things.

1.      Split goals into achievable small pieces – e.g. First let's reach the river, then enjoy the scene, then the waterfall

2.      Excite the team about the goal – e.g. The tallest single stream waterfall. The never-to-be-missed sceneries. Tell them stories.

3.      Positive reinforcements - e.g. You did this much better than others. This gave the feeling that we are doing good and can do better

4.      Help the team bask in the glory - Let the team relish the moment when they reach the goal e.g. The video that Baan took when we were at the edge is one of the best ones I am personally present. I still watch it occasionally and I invariably come out patting my back

Have you also learned from unsuspecting sources? Would love to hear.

On similar lines, I had earlier shared learning from my son – Corporate lessons from my son

Let’s be humble and open. We will learn more.