10 Leadership Lessons From Genghis Khan

Ghengis Khan was perhaps the greatest general ever to have lived. He was the founder, and ruler of the Mongol Empire – a nation much larger than the Roman Empire at its peak, in fact it was the largest and most continuous empire in history – spreading right through central Asia, parts of China, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East!

Temujin was born into a nomadic Mongol tribe in 1162. When Temujin was 12 years old, his father was killed and the family left to die in the harsh Mongolian winter. Temujin and his family survived, but the lessons he learned evolving from manhood at the age of 12 into the warrior known as Genghis Khan, are timeless.

Here are 10 leadership lessons based on his principals, methods, and ways of life, which will help you with your personal life, business success, and especially with your leadership aspirations!

Lesson 1 : Build Your PerseveranceAs a boy, Genghis ran up and down mountains with a mouth full of water. Over time, he got to where he could return to the starting point and spit the entire mouthful on the ground. This was a triumph that signaled he had developed the aerobic strength to run up and down mountains breathing only through his nose.

Build your perseverance, and it will produce 4 qualities: commitment – a sense that you are giving your bestchallenge – a sense that obstacles are challenges and not threatscontrol – a sense that you are in control of yourself and what happens to you confidence – a sense that you can achieve your goals.

Lesson 2 : Build Your MasteryDrawing a bow and arrow from the back of a galloping horse and accurately hitting the target is not easy. Genghis mastered his art by developing the power to heave the thick bow back so he could aim his arrow and understanding the movements of the horse he was riding, so that he could shoot his arrow with enough accuracy to hit the target.

Build your mastery by doing these:Cultivate the strengths within you - especially those you don’t know yetCollaborate with your chosen partners - Understand the organization or people with whom you workSee what no one else sees - Use it for mutual advantage

Lesson 3 : Never Loose Focus On Your Purpose In LifeGenghis Khan had one purpose in life, and he never lost that focus. He was not distracted by a desire for possessions or wealth as he became more powerful. His one purpose in life was to see his enemies—those who had killed his father and left him and his family to starve in the winter—brought to justice.

We all have wounds that drive us. No one gets out of the playground without a few scars. Here’s what you can do:<ul><li>Convert your wounds into strengths

Uncover your passion by asking a question like, “What am I good at?”

Follow that passion to a possible path of purpose

Take action. The discovery is exciting

Lesson 4 : Walk The TalkWalking the talk will motivate and empower your staff, and increase their productivity. Genghis always went into battles with his troops, he did not just sit at the top of the hill planning, he charged, he fought, he cut off heads. We’re not advising you kill anybody, but Ghengis’ principles are not lost on the modern environment.

It shows you are an equal, you are not unapproachable, or above them, and if you value their jobs, and show they are important people will be much more willing to work. They want to reach the top, and if the boss got there by being dedicated, and hardworking at the lower levels – and still revisits them, then that is how they will do it too.

Lesson 5 : Share The Rewards With Your StaffShare the rewards to create a common goal with your staff, and increase their desire to work, and enjoyment of it!Genghis shared everything with his loyal supporters and was seen a most generous as a Leader. Genghis knew that people will love you for it, and will work even harder for your cause, thus creating more wealth! by sharing more Genghis NEVER had to worry about money!

If you reward people fairly – for doing a hard day’s work then they will come back and do another. If you underpay them, or do not give enough commission, or are greedy then this will not benefit you and it will not benefit them – they may get lazy; “what’s the point in working if there’s no better reward” – making your personal rewards even less and your competition more fierce!

Lesson 6 : Surround Yourself With People Who Are Better Than You!Lead and manage those better than you and they will work for you instead of against – gain strength from others where you are weak and use the talents of many to accomplish things much bigger than yourself. Genghis was an amazing leader, but in truth he was not THE strongest warrior – the most skilled and strongest warriors made up his chiefs in battle and his some of his right hand men.

Many people take an us VS them approach, especially when people have similar skills – not Genghis – he would make friends, and allies of them, he would sing their praises and tell them how skilled and strong they were in battle. This made them feel valued, and wanted, and made them fight even harder to live up to their new image.

“ Even when a friend does something you do not like, he continues to be your friend.”

Lesson 7 : Keep a Liberal Attitude Towards People’s BeliefsBe open and accepting and reward people based on effort and work alone to avoid an “us VS them culture” Genghis never persecuted based on religion. This was of great benefit military wise as when he was at war with Sultan Muhammad of Khwarazm, other Islamic Leaders did not join the fight against him, instead it was seen as a non-holy war between two individuals.

You should never single groups of people out, or show a preference to particular types of people / groups. If you do it will build resentment to people, who do better in your organization, and if you do have a real issue with someone of these “groups” , the whole group may stand together and cause you more harm than good.

Lesson 8 : Never Stop LearningKeep a mindset of always looking to learn something new, be relentless in your learning. Never think you have achieved success and stop looking to improve – never stand still. Ghengis himself was responsible for the spread of the Uighurs script which was used as the common Mongolian alphabet. He was relentless in learning new things, absorbing ideas from other cultures as often as he could.

Never get so self important that you can’t take advice, or learn something from a new recruit – there is value in everyone, and generally as human beings there is no ceiling on our development, there is always ways you can improve, and if you aren’t, your competitors will be, and you will lose your top position.

Lesson 9 : Reward LoyaltyLoyalty is one of the strongest traits you can harness in your staff – if they are loyal they will work for the good of your organization – which should also be for their mutual benefit!! Genghis recognized loyalty as a key trait, a trait which signified strength, fearless, and virtue – and when he saw this in people he would do everything he could to promote it further, and reward it.

Do everything you can to promote and develop a loyal workforce, it can be hard to spot an opportunity sometimes, but instead of chastising and making enemies of good workers who oppose you on some issues Reward them, and commend them on their loyalty, and make it very clear that you want people with those character traits!

Lesson 10 : Don’t Fight If You Don’t Have ToDon’t go head to head, find an easier way round, swallow your pride and you will have the last laugh.However successful Genghis was in battle he would always lose some men, and have to slaughter then entire population of the enemy. Instead by letting some fights go he would save men, and could even turn these entire populations (that he would of slaughtered) into recruits into his army in the future.

Can you avoid a fight? Can you grow in another direction then come back to “conquer” your opponent when you are in a much better position in the future? You could be directing your resources into “peaceful” activities which will provide “organic / natural growth” for your business…

“Any action committed in anger is an action doomed to failure.”

“With Heaven’s aid I have conquered for you a huge empire. But my life was too short to achieve the conquest of the world. That is left for you”

“The disciplines that helped him to conquer and unify the Mongols are the same ones we need today to prepare for the unknown, embrace the unexpected, and choose the better alternative.”