Reading the news article on NyTimes.com – Chechen Rights Campaigner Is Killed , got me thinking what different Natalya Estemirova could have done to survive and keep fighting for the rights of Chechen people.
My idea – Always learn from what leaders in any space are doing or have done. And for this case, i think the best example is – Mahatma Gandhi. Go, read the complete Wikipedia page on him. Read books on him.
Anyhow, my observations on Mahatma Gandhi – He had a real good plan for India. He could see what would happen in the next 30-40 years, and how he will get India it’s independence from British rule. If you look at the years 1916–1945, he did 4 major campaigns in India – Champaran and Kheda(1918), Non-cooperation(1920), Swaraj and the Salt Satyagraha (Salt March)(1930), Quit India Movement(1942). By the time Quit India Movement was all said and done, it was virtually guaranteed that India will get it’s freedom.
My key takeaways:
- Dont try to be the lone wolf: Which means, if you are fighting for a cause, and the cause does not have a big following, you can very easily be taken out by the people whom you are fighting against. In other words, lone wolf can easily get shot, which is what happened in this case.
- Survive: If you get killed, so will your dream/campaign. So plan for survival
- Look for big opportunities, not the first opportunity: It’s the same way big companies work. Microsoft does not start competing with every startup. They work for billion dollar market areas.
- Plan for years: You cannot fix a broken country or society in 5-10 years. Heck, you cannot even fix a company in that much time(example Motorola). So, plan for big campaign, implement them(2-3 years), stop, take rest for 5-10 years, network, and then come back with another big campaign.
Filed under: Politics
