#Book Review
serving liquor and snacks to his troops instead of just
tea.
Transformational Leadership
Idealized influence – Sam was very particular about
discipline, military precision and punctuality and
personal grooming. Under his influence, his ADC and
other soldiers and officers also followed his example.
Inspirational motivation - Sam's speech to his corps
would be very concise but very effective. After 1962
defeat, his words to his men were, “from now
onwards there will be no withdrawals except on my
personal orders which will not be given. We shall
stand and fight where we dig in.
Remember, we are all expendable but neither the
reputation of the army is nor is the honour of the
country.” This message clearly stated Sam's objectives
to his troops and also stated their mission.
Intellectual stimulation – Sam would often visit his
officers to consult them on various issues. He would
hold their opinions in high esteem and would change
his decision if their suggestions were more appealing.
He along with the DS community, updated training
doctrines and manuals to make them relevant for
post-independent India.
Individualized consideration – Sam was very
affectionate towards the Gorkhas and they respected
and trusted him. He would have tea with his officers
and soldiers and try to know about their family, solve
their problems and address their concerns. He would
have a row with political leaders to get issues resolved
for his men. He would visit his officers personally and
enquire about their hometown, their life and their
problems.
Authentic Leadership
Authentic leaders know about themselves and their
leadership comes from their being and the person they
are, and not from their titles or positions. Sam was
always true to his values and ethics and spoke his mind
openly. He was very straightforward about what he
considered right and wrong, even when it meant he
would get in trouble. He had a sense of community
and built a friendly work environment. He never used
his position to defy laws or take advantage of it. He
genuinely cared about his men and always put their
needs before him. But he was very strong on following
rules for he was unforgiving of such behaviors and
dealt with it strictly. He was always clear on his visions
and knew what he wanted to achieve and guided his
INM MAGAZINE VOLUME 8 | FEBRUARY 2016
men in the same direction. He committed to
excellence and anything he did. He left deep impact
on people he came in contact with and is a legacy for
the nation to follow. Inspite of his achievements, Sam
was always humble.
Perception Theories
Horn Effect
If our first impression about a person is negative, we
tend to ignore his positive characteristics and
concentrate only on the negative ones.
The same effect was observed in one of the incidents
of Sam's life. When Sam was assigned to Sikh platoon,
his fair skin and rather delicate features did not quite
impress the sturdy Sikhs. One day he overheard them
lamenting their fate 'What shall we do now that a girl
has been made our platoon commander!' But Sam
actually spoke fluent Punjabi and also beat his ace
platoon runner after giving him a lead. This
established his credentials and the men readily
accepted him as their leader on sensing his true
personality.
Confirmation bias
It is the tendency to favor information that confirms
one's beliefs or hypotheses. People display this bias
when they gather or remember information
selectively, or when they interpret it in a biased way.
When the army Chief Gen. Muchu Chaudhuri ordered
a brigade to be moved from Meerut to Delhi on
anticipating the riots which may follow after the PM
Jawaharlal Nehru's death.
Alarmed at the move, the government concluded that
the chief and army commander Sam were planning a
coup. While Muchu was able to convince the
government that he harbored no ulterior motives,
doubts about this and Sam's intentions lingered for
many years. So, when Sam was posted to Calcutta as
GOC in C Eastern Command, this reinforced the
perception that moving troops to Delhi had tainted
him with the brush of culpability. This displays the
perception of people due to confirmatory bias against
him
Motivation Theories
Sam Manekshaw would always motivate his peers and
subordinates to stand firm in adversity and give their
best. An instance that portrays the same is:
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