Unexpected Leadership Lessons from Sudoku

Frankly, I had assumed that Sudoku was a puzzle for those who had nothing better to do. But, I was so wrong.

In fact, this unpretentious game is such a powerful tool to boost your cognitive abilities, and playing it regularly makes you a smarter person, and a better leader.

Sudoku invigorates the players brain, enhances problem solving ability, decision-making, improves memory and concentration. It also prevents brain degeneration. It is a highly stimulating and useful hobby to pursue with multiple benefits. I strongly recommend Sudoku to everyone, especially those in a leadership position.

Let us discuss some of the unexpected benefits tucked within those grids:

1: “Sudoku aids in training your mind to work as a radar”

Only a responsible leader truly understand the weight of the phrase, “The buck stops here.” That is why, they harbor a secrete anxiety right before making a crucial decision: “Have I considered everything?”

They know that every issue comes with a set of preexisting realities. Some of them are glaringly obvious, but others are not. Not only do each one of them have an impact on the situation under consideration, but their decisions also impact all of them. It is, therefore, vital for the leaders to keep their sight on every component and work around them, with them, and leverage them to succeed.

Every Sudoku puzzle comes with a few single digit numbers occupying seemingly random boxes to begin with. But they are not. One has to keep each one of them in mind and fill in the blank boxes to complete the puzzle successfully. Playing Sudoku regularly develops a 360 degree vision and makes your mind work like a radar.

2: “Sudoku trains you to find a solution with what you have”

“Okay, Houston, we’ve had a problem here.” That was the exact message transmitted by the crew of Apollo 13 Moon Mission on April 13, 1970 at 9:07PM. It was NASA’s seventh manned space mission, but only the third one that was intended to put man on the Moon. However, things did not go as planned. 56 hours into the mission, one of the two oxygen tanks exploded and failed the other in the command module (CM). It triggered several system failures that were mission critical, life support, propulsion, and navigation. The moon landing had to be summarily abandoned. But, the Mission Control was suddenly confronted with a challenge that they were not prepared for: How to save the three astronauts in the damaged spacecraft that was already in the Lunar orbit? They knew that the odds were hugely stacked against the crew and time was fast running out. But, what the team did next was interesting. With a rescue mission out of the equation, they focused on finding a solution with what they had to bring the crew back home safely. Survival of the crew being the first priority, the three astronauts were asked to move to the Lunar landing module (LM), although, it was designed for only two astronauts, but they had no other option. Then they shut down the common module (CM) to conserve the oxygen and power that were essential for later. The Mission Control had to rewrite new procedures and programs, including rework a new flight path to get them back to earth safely. Precisely before the spacecraft reentered the Earth’s atmosphere, the astronauts were moved back to the command module (CM) that was designed to withstand friction, heat, pressure, gravity, air density to protect the capsule and its occupants. The crew had to endure a long arduous journey in a cramped space, low temperature, darkness, and shortage of food and water. NASA’s Apollo 13 Mission finally ended with all three astronauts successfully brought back home safely on April 18, 1970. No wonder, it is referred to as, “Successful failure,” (To read a detailed account of Apollo 13 Mission: https://www.nasa.gov/missions/apollo/apollo-13-mission-details/).

Sudoku brings out the stark truth that every leader knows it in their heart: They have to work with what they have. Nothing is unlimited. It could be the limited resources, manpower, opportunities, framework, or any other constraints. There’s nothing they can pull out of the thin air to help them.

3: “Sudoku trains you to avoid acting on assumptions”

I learned this crisp and valuable lesson from the managing director of a large and successful business conglomerate while I was spearheading a project for the group. He would often stop by my cabin to bounce an idea or ask for my opinion on something. During one such impromptu interactions, he turned down one of my suggestions because it was partially based on an assumption. He heard my reasons, and without any indignation or condemnation simply said, “Do not assume, my friend.” Not only was my suggestion was based on an assumption, but I had assumed that those interactions were "casual." I still remember those words and practice them seriously even today.

Playing Sudoku trains you to resist haste, eliminate randomness and assumptions. It teaches the importance of the work needed to find the right fit that is backed by facts before making any choice or decision. It trains you to consider multiple options to avoid a solution that might look good at the time but will prove to be unsuitable later on.

4: “Create a Grid and Deal with it”

Every leadership position comes with certain responsibilities that cannot be shared or passed on to anyone else. They must deal with the issues that grow in size and complexity with their grade. Many leaders turn to their trusted aides and advisers for counsel, meetings, research, data, etcetera for help. That is fine. But, if the leader is not organized, then it is hard for them to plug the holes systematically.

Sudoku sharpens your ability to divide a large issue into smaller bits and organize them in logical groups or clusters and view them as a mosaic. It trains you to glance the knowns, unknowns and blanks in a grid format. That helps you to see the whole, as well as, each component separately, and assess how they complement or clash with each other. A grid makes it easier to build a solution brick by brick, and analyze it in the same manner.

5: “Everyone is Unique and Significant”

Sudoku is a crossword-like game using the numbers between 1 and 9. The rules are simple, but hard to play, because every digit, small or big, must appear only once in a 3x3 box, and also in any row or column. Playing Sudoku trains every leader to value every individual in their team, and how everyone is unique, possesses unique qualities, holds a unique place and plays a unique role in the whole system to succeed. It helps them to assign them the right responsibilities, as well as, acknowledge their individual contributions.

Please let me know other advantages of playing Sudoku in your comments below.