7 Leadership Lessons From Alexander The Great

Alexander became king when only 20 and in an amazing eleven-year journey of conquest rode 10,00 miles, fought 70 battles without losing a single one and conquered all the way from Egypt to India – half the known world of those times. All this in a life spanning a mere 32 years! Obviously an achievement of such epic proportions could not have happened without the display of some amazing leadership qualities. What leadership qualities of Alexander made historians label him 'Great'? Here are 7 incidents from the short life of Alexander, that are illustrative of his leadership style and which we could take lessons from.

Alexander the Great Source Encyclopedia Britannica

Leadership Lesson #1: Have An action orientation

Action was what Alexander wanted from life. He hated a life of comfortable sloth. When he heard of the conquests of his father, King Philip of Macedonia, Alexander was not happy about the additional wealth and power that he would inherit, but instead was sad that there would be less left for him to conquer. Alexander often lamented to his friends that the way things were going nothing would be left for him to do once he became king!

Leadership Lesson # 2: Care for your people

Between 30,000 and 43,000 infantry and between 3,000 and 4,000 horsemen followed Alexander into Asia Minor [334 B.C.]. He had only 70 talents (Greek currency) for their pay, and no more than thirty days' provisions. Alexander was 200 talents in debt, having spent everything he had in making sure that his best men were able to provide for their families. When one of his generals asked what he had kept for himself, Alexander answered: "My hope." On hearing this, the general refused the pension that Alexander offered him, saying: "Your soldiers will be your partners in that."

Lesson # 3: Be seen caring for your people

After covering four hundred miles in eleven days in the battle against King Darius, Alexander and his soldiers were nearly dead from thirst. Some Macedonian scouts had brought back a few bags of water from a distant river, and they offered Alexander a helmet-full. Although his mouth was so dry that he nearly was choking, he gave back the helmet with his thanks and explained: "There is not enough for everyone, and if I drink, the others will faint." When his men saw this, they spurred their horses forward and shouted for him to lead them. With such a king, they said, they would defy any hardships.

Leadership Lesson # 4: Dare to innovate!

In the city of Gordium, Alexander accepted the challenge of the Gordian knot. A very intricate knot tied together the yoke of an ancient chariot, and there was a legend that whoever could undo the knot would become the master of the world. Alexander pulled out his sword and chopped through the Gordian knot, instead of involving himself in its mysterious entanglements.

Lesson # 5: Lead by personal example

One day, Alexander fell behind the rest of his army because his old teacher, Lysimachus could not keep up. Night found Alexander in a very dangerous position: far behind his army and without any fire to combat the cold. He noticed some enemy campfires, so he ran over to one, killed two soldiers with his knife, then carried back a burning stick to his men. This was typical of Alexander -- he was always encouraging his men by a personal example of readiness to work and face danger.

Lesson # 6: Live your values

One night at Gaugamela, the armies of Alexander and Darius, King of Persia, came in sight of each other. The noise and campfires of the vast barbarian camp were so frightening that some of Alexander's generals advised a night attack because it would be too dangerous to take on such a huge force in daylight. But Alexander replied: "I will not steal victory."

Lesson # 7: Reward your people

Another time, one of the common soldiers was driving a mule that carried some of Alexander's treasure. The mule was too exhausted to go on, so the soldier put the load on his own shoulders. Alexander saw the man staggering along, and he asked what was the matter. The soldier told him that the mule was too tired to carry the load, and that he was about at the end of his endurance too. "Don't give up now," said Alexander, "but carry what you have there to the end of the journey, then take it to your own tent, to keep for yourself."

Parting Thought

These incidents offer us an understanding of why Alexander truly deserved the title of 'The Great'. But was his epic achievement a result only of his remarkable leadership skills and courage? In the words of a fellow Greek – Euripedes, 'Courage is nothing if the gods withhold their aid'. Can one say the same of leadership skills too?

Was Alexander truly a Leadership ka Sikander or was he a Muqqadar ka Sikander - the most favoured child of God?

Why is the practice of leadership difficult?

More than 2,500 years ago, Sun Tsu, in his The Art of War, advised military leaders to "Know the enemy." In WW II, the German general Erwin Rommel did it so well, that he came within an inch of hammering the Allied British forces. On the other side of the enemy lines, the commander of the gun battery on the Dover cliffs knew his enemy too! Every night, during the war, a German boat from the other side of the channel would travel up the straits on a reconnaissance mission. The commander, knowing the Germanic trait of being methodical and disciplined, watched for a pattern to emerge. He soon realized that the boat would come around exactly at 10p.m. He would therefore set up his guns and be ready and waiting, and when it hove  into view - he would just blast it away!

So then, can the knowledge of military history and strategies, along with the study of Sun Tsu's Art of War and other writings on leadership, lead one to becoming a successful leader? Well yes, but only partly. 

The reason? Leadership is  a complex phenomenon.

Being a leader requires heavy lifting!

 But just how complex? Atul Gawande in his book, The Checklist Manifesto, describes 3 levels of complexity;

• At Level 1 are simple problems like baking a cake, you master the recipe, and you are ensured success.
• At Level 2 are complicated problems like sending a rocket to the moon. The special expertise, once learned, becomes replicable.
• At Level 3 are complex problems such as raising a child. Since every child is unique, outcomes are uncertain.

Leadership shares it complexity with parenting. Just as every child is unique, every leadership situation too is unique. And therefore, even though reams and reams have been written, researched and studied about the subject of leadership, its practice continues to create uneven outcomes.

Given the complexities of leading a business , business leaders have found a CEO coach to be a useful help in becoming better leaders. A coach can help leaders unravel the complexities, understand their strengths and weaknesses, and make the knowledge work to their advantage. As one of the business leaders I was coaching remarked," Uday,  after I have started  practicing my coaching commitments, I find my employees have a greater respect for me."

A respect born purely out of understanding and successfully working on his leadership potential.