One of the movies that make you feel proud to be an Indian is the movie Dangal. Dangal is an Aamir Khan film with heartwarming performances by all actors portraying how champions are born out of villages in India. It gives remarkable insights on how a leader can recognize, realize and reap hidden talents.Here are the insights you might enjoy reading:

Have a Big Vision.
Society laughs at Mahavir Singh (Aamir Khan) because of his decision to ask his daughters to be wrestlers. But he believes his vision is possible. Leaders think big; they think differently. Look at the leaders of today. They have big visions: SpaceX founder and CEO Elon Musk shared his vision to colonize Mars – now that’s a big vision; Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, is testing out ways to make deliveries with drones; and Samsung is working on ‘Project Valley,’ a program to develop smartphones with bendable and foldable screens. The question is what’s your big vision?

You have to Persevere.
A Chinese bamboo tree is unique — you water it and nurture it for four years and nothing will happen. There would be no visible sign of growth but all of a sudden in the fifth year the bamboo tree would grow close to ninety feet. When you work on your dream, things will happen. Sometimes you may not see any sign of growth for a long time. In those moments don’t believe your eyes, believe your heart. The bamboo tree is growing beneath. Have faith. People will make fun of you, asking you, “Is that all you have after four years?” Remember at that moment that you have to believe in your heart. Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, said, “Whatever the mind can believe and conceive it can achieve.”

Study and Upgrade.
Mahavir Singh studies the past videos of Geeta Kumari to understand the reasons behind her failure in the international performances. Effective and useful analysis of the available data is the key to predicting and prescribing future actions. The analysis not only helps minimize the mistakes, but it helps in driving the most appropriate actions in future.

In today’s job market, one thing that is currently happening is “creative destruction.” New technologies are destroying old jobs and creating new paradigms. If you ask me personally where to invest your capital, my one-word answer is “SKILLS.” The rate of change in our world is astonishing. The skills we have today will largely be irrelevant in a few years. New skills can equip you for future challenges and keep you relevant in the new business economy. So what’s the one skill that will take you the next level in your job?

Learn to Fly Alone:
Geeta’s father was her strength. He would guide her during the match on what strategy to use and how to wrestle and win. But in the final wrestling match when Geeta was expecting her father to be present, he didn’t turn up. Geeta’s worst nightmare came to life and she had to fight without her father physically being present. Geeta was just like an eaglet that was pushed from the nest to fly by herself. Geeta did well; she applied all her learning during the match. She finally won the gold at Commonwealth Games. Chak De is another movie in which Kabir Khan (Shahrukh Khan), the coach of the Indian women’s hockey team told the team before the final match, to play with their heart, without expecting any support from him. The team finally won. As a leader, you must be willing to let go of the trained mentee and let him or her become independent. Till that time enjoy the Dangal song – Dangal, Dangal!

If you are looking for learnings from other movies here’s an index for you:

1. Lagaan: Leadership Lessons from Lagaan
2. Chak De: “Chak De India” Team Work
3. Other movies: 10 Inspirational Movies for Teams

– Article by Nishit Lal.

Originally published on Focus Adventure : Dangal, Creative Destruction & the Bamboo Tree.