“6 years and 4 Jobs ! You have a stability issue” ,”Why have you been changing your jobs” these are questions that I have frequently asked as an Interviewer and frequently been asked as an interviewee. 

The response is always tactful, a bit camouflaged (wink). It mostly boils down to something in the organization that did not work. But then, what is an organization? For an individual an organization is a bunch of people who he works with and his supervisor. 

There is an old saying- people don’t leave companies, they leave their supervisors.

Attrition data, employee surveys always second that. A gallop report released in 2017 mentioned that managers can influence 75% of the reasons why employees quit.

Looking back at my career I think that’s quite true. I kept hopping through organizations looking for what I thought was an ideal job, but in hindsight I was looking for an ideal Manager. I often wondered- Is there an ideal Manager? Or is the term just coined for articles and books and maybe competency frameworks.

15 years into my profession, one day I found my answer away from the glass houses of Gurgaon and in the basement of a residential colony in Delhi.. I found my answer in a yoga class. A yoga class that was jam packed with students addicted to yoga. I attended one class and found myself coming back for more. There was a change in my thoughts, emotions, my appearance.

Why ? What was working? What was it that was driving so many students ..students who never missed a day in 20 years.. What was making them so dedicated? It dawned on me that it was not just the practice, it was the teacher. So what was it that he was doing? 

1. He gave the same attention to each and every student in the class. It didn’t matter what time the person walked in , where they came from or how well they knew him. No one was more .. no one was less ..everyone was an equal.
2. His exercises were tailored to everyone’s needs. As students we all came with our unsaid  expectations of what we wanted from the class. It did not matter how varied our needs were, his routine took care of all our requirements. It was as if he knew what we needed. 
3. He made sure no one was competing with the other. The focus was only on ourselves and following instructions to the best of our ability. He knew when we were attentive or not. Nothing was said, but it was sensed. He would call out, get us back in the zone. 
4. It didn’t matter if you were terrible at a posture, or you could not do something or anything. You would never feel embarrassed. He would keep encouraging you to try…and you would. He would say- “you reached the mat .. that itself is enough”
5. There were students who were more flexible.. Maybe even stronger than him, but it never mattered, his aim was to only make them better at their craft. He was humble. He never put himself in the picture. The class was about his students and constantly enhancing their potential

I wish I had a magic wand and could transport all these qualities to people leaders across all corporates. Wouldn’t it be magical, if all supervisors assume the role of a teacher. How would that supervisor be ? What would he or she do? 

1. He would give the same attention to each and every person in his team. No matter how new , how old the person in the system. No matter how different the person is from him, no matter what the person can or cannot deliver at work.
2. He would assign work well matched to each person’s strengths, his potential. He would know his people, he would know their needs, their triggers 
3. He would make sure there is no competition in the team, only a culture of collaboration. The focus is only on bettering oneself. No one would be considered or portrayed better than the other. The focus is just on doing what you can and your best. He would listen.. Listen to what was being said and the unsaid.. Listen to what was being felt.
4. He would understand each and every team member- their strengths and weaknesses, accept them and allow each one to grow in their own right, at their own pace, in their own way. He would ensure that no one feels small or embarrassed. Maybe if he says “You tried…that is itself is enough ….”
5. He would be humble, he would be a giver. It would not matter to him if his team was getting better than him or would know more or would learn more. His mission would just to help them grow , become a better version of themselves professionally and maybe personally. His team before self. A giver and teacher…

How would that team be? Maybe one day I will find such an organization, that culture and that manager. Till then I try to embrace these points for myself professionally and personally I continue looking up to my teacher.