I’m always on the look-out for advice on management. In an earlier podcast, I discussed the ideas of Peter Drucker from his 1967 book “The Effective Executive”. This time, I thought I’d go 2,500 years back to the Chinese philosopher and statesman Confucius.  

You may wonder what he had to say about management, but you have to remember he was a master of understanding how hierarchical structures worked. And what are companies except for a set of hierarchical relationships? So, I’ve gone through Confucius’ classic text “The Analects” and picked out the best lines that could be relevant for business leaders and managers in the podcast. Some of the lines include:

• Do not impose on others what you yourself do not want”
• And Avoid over-promising and under-delivering
• The good leader is at ease without being arrogant; the bad leader is arrogant without being at ease
• Surround yourself with people that are better than you
• A good manager helps others realise what they are good at, the bad manager helps them realise what they are bad at.
• Don’t be short-termist as you’ll not accomplish the big goals
• If leaders don’t act unethically, others won’t either even if it carried a reward

I hope you find this helpful. You can subscribe to my podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for “Deep See With Bilal”. Also, make sure to rate and review this podcast and enjoy! 

Bilal