“The strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.”
– Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book
(*Spoiler alert)

A great movie to watch with your teams or students, The Jungle Book gives us various leadership, workplace, and life lessons. Here are a few:

Strengths-Based Leadership

Well-intentioned Bagheera (panther) wants Mowgli (child) to fit in and be safe with the wolves. So he teaches him not to use his strengths as a human but to do what the wolves do. It takes Baloo (bear) to appreciate how Mowgli shines when he uses his strengths, and he encourages him to use them. Bagheera changes his mind when he sees Mowgli use his human strengths to save the baby elephant. And when Mowgli faces his ultimate challenge facing Shere Khan (tiger) and wants to challenge him like a wolf, Bagheera stops him and tells him to use his gifts as a human, not a wolf.

Conformity may seem safe and we do need a shared mission and values to guide us, but people need to be free to shine and use their unique strengths to fulfill the mission. How do you free your team members to be their authentic best selves?

Courage 

We witness the turning point in Mowgli’s journey of courage when he stops running from Shere Khan and goes to face him. What unleashes this courage is love; he is devastated that Shere Khan has killed Akela (leader of wolf pack).

When leaders are motivated by love for the greater good instead of for money/power to dominate, we witness acts of amazing moral courage. I believe the most important foundation in leadership development is removing the barriers to love. What would help you bring more love and courage to your leadership?

Power
Fire is the ultimate power the animals see humans as having. Mowgli only reaches out for it when he wants to face Shere Khan and protect his family. Wise leaders do not use power to dominate others but to build a caring and just society.

When Mowgli first handles this new power, he does not know the extent of the potential dangers the power can unleash, and accidentally sets the forest on fire. This is a good reminder for leaders who acquire new levels of power to know how to handle it with wisdom and care.

Mowgli throws the fire away when he realises that his family fears him because of it. Shere Khan calls that a stupid move, but to Mowgli, the kinship and trust of his family is more important. He chooses love, which is a power greater than fire.

Some leaders thrive on inducing fear like Shere Khan. This could arise due to various reasons: their own unhealed fears and wounds; fear-inducing leadership styles they were exposed to; lack of awareness of a way of leading that is grounded in love and inspiration; lack of awareness of all the research that links positive emotions with high work performance. The leader’s inner life, awareness and growth is crucial to what he or she puts out into the world. What is your relationship with power?

The runt of the wolf pack is reminded that sometimes runts are eaten (being the weakest in the litter). Yet in the litter, this “powerless” runt is the one who misses Mowgli the most. It takes one outcast to connect with another outcast. It also takes this runt to wake up his mum when the rest of the litter are sitting dangerously close to Shere Khan, listening to him while he instills fear and jealousy into them. This is a reminder for leaders to pay attention to everyone in the team. Those who are different and may have less power have important messages that can help the team. How do you listen to all the voices in your team, especially the voices which are often not heard?

Needs Vs. Wants

“Look for the bare necessities/ The simple bare necessities/Forget about your worries and your strife/I mean the bare necessities/Old mother nature’s recipes/ That bring the bare necessities of life” (Lyrics by Terry Gylkison)

Baloo’s song about the good life serves as a reminder for leaders to embrace the beauty and power of simplicity. It reminds me of Gandhi’s call:

“The world has enough for everyone’s need, but not enough for everyone’s greed.”

We would live in a different world if more leaders knew that true joy cannot come from an ever-increasing hunger for material possessions and power to dominate others, but fundamentals such as friendship, kindness, gratitude and service.

Beyond Happiness by Sir Anthony Seldon, and various positive psychology sources would be useful exposure for leaders. Positive and servant leadership are also paths to greater meaning and true joy (although they are not necessarily easy paths). With exposure to these, we would have fewer leaders scurrying around and hurting others as they search in vain for happiness. What is one step you can take to embark on/deepen your journey of true joy?

Storytelling

Kaa, the serpent, knows the power of storytelling. She captivates Mowgli by telling him the story behind the loss of his parents (so she can kill him). Leaders can use stories to build the kind of culture they want. I meet inspiring people who love stories, but don’t consider themselves to be dramatic, professionally trained storytellers. I remind them that they do not need to be.

Leaders can share and encourage staff to share personal stories that show their humanness, strengths, vulnerabilities and lessons learned. They can also encourage the sharing of work-related stories for inspiration and learning. Sharing inspiring stories involving colleagues or service-users can add to a positive work culture. Sharing stories of missed opportunities can be important learning points. Leaders can also use movies and fiction books for sharing key lessons and values. Sharing this article with your team after watching and discussing The Jungle Book would be one example!

_{This post was first published on Vadivu Govind's LinkedIn blog and has been reposted on Executive Lifestyle with the permission of the author.}

_{Edited by Nedda Chaplin
Image credit:
© Disney Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Poster showing fire by Tom Miatke - Art & Design}

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