The document discusses lessons that can be learned from the African lion and applied to leadership in the corporate world. It notes that a leader's message should be clear and delivered in a way that prevents distortion as it moves down the hierarchy. Leaders should directly deliver certain important messages and not rely solely on written communication. When interacting with employees, leaders should walk lightly and influence through respect rather than intimidation in order to build a positive culture. Experience, authenticity, and strong moral character are what truly earn respect from others.

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Lead Instinctively- The Lion
Perhaps the 5 most interesting facts about the African Lion are that;
The adult male’s roar can be heard over 8kms away– take a second to take that in…To
transition to the workplace, big industry or corporate South Africa lets pull the CEO or the
Executive’s key organisational message’s into view- something we have seen time
immemorial is a key message regarding the organisations’ growth or strategy often distilled,
mangled and misinterpreted along the hierarchical ladder to the point that when this
message reaches the foot soldiers in an organisation that message and more importantly the
spirit of that message is lost in translation. These titans of industry are turning broken
telephone into a sport.
Too often I have witnessed senior managers turn a message meant to inspire, inform,
mobilize and/or motivate into a taunt or threat attaching their own skewed interpretation

2. into the mix to reveal a message mutated that only serves to reinforce their own insecure
and selfish aims.
What are the take-outs from the Lion’s roar?
Your message should be airtight, it should be crystal clear, it should have built-in fail safes
that prevent it from being mangled, it should be sent along trusted channels via messengers
of high integrity and who themselves have bought into the sanctity of delivering the message
in a profound and inspiring manner, and most importantly it should be so simple that there
won’t be a need to call in the local translators.
There are some messages however that you simply have to deliver yourself. You cannot
reduce every message to notice boards, company newsletters or email – there are certain
messages that only your voice must carry. There are times when your people must hear your
voice- none of us were raised by memo besides there is something authentic that is created
in this process of genuine human engagement. Don’t outsource your roar.In short- roar like
Lion and ensure that your message travels unhindered and unburdened across the plains of
your organisation and most importantly is heard at all levels in the spirit in which it is meant
and for the purpose for which it is intended.
A female Lion needs 5kgs of meat a day– Whilst the male lions protect the pride and the
territory the female lions hunt for food, they’re your proverbial hunters in the organisation,
the front line employees & their back office colleagues that create awesome experiences for
your customers.
Whilst the CEO and executive are tasked with protecting the business territory, market and
strategize about the future view, the hunters as it were need to be nourished and fed not just
adequately but to ensure that they can hunt within the aforementioned territory unhindered,
unbridled and unharmed.
They need to be empowered to do what they do- they must have autonomy in this, they
need to be able to trust that you have their backs and that should they need your help you
will come running because that’s what you do- you protect them and the territory, further
they need to be nourished, enriched, developed, coached, mentored, inspired and motivated
to ensure the hunt continues and that there is meat for everybody within the organisation.

3. There is a reciprocation worth noting here though, the male lions still eat first and the
females though exclusively involved in the hunt would never usurp this right from their male
counterparts, don’t for one minute confuse this with a gender-based evaluation, for the
purposes of this passage the female lions are the subordinate employees and as such one
must be careful not to abuse such power that comes with eating first, or to coin a few
corporate terms, don’t abuse the fact and don’t laud the fact that you are privy to sensitive
information first or that you are privy to the exco packs before anyone else is. That you get to
eat at the executive table as it were and finally that you are not only involved in decisions
around remuneration and bonuses but that you determine them as well.You are a custodian
of the pride and the territory, this is an awesome responsibility. This responsibility should
humble you. Most importantly you are responsible for ensuring that the “pride” hunts and
exists safely within that territory. There should be nothing more important to you than
protecting your people and the territory your business operates in. It is also worth noting that
on rare occasions the male lions join in the hunt…now there is a thought…Protect your
family.
Lions go on the hunt for food mostly from dusk till dawn– Lions go on the hunt for food mostly
from dusk till dawn-Yes lions surprise their prey, camouflage is involved and more
importantly under the guise of dusk, dawn and darkness they play to their strengths. Often
the hunt is not planned to the point of distraction- more often than not the hunt is about
opportunism and readiness. Whilst planning is important do not let obsessive planning and
slow decision making paralyze you and your teams from taking action.
It is worth noting that lions have a maximum hunt success rate of between 30% & 40%- that’s
a kill every 2-3 hunts. It makes motivating and energizing your hunters critical because
success does not come easy and the playing fields demand maximum effort.
To translate this for the business landscape- whether you’re offering a service or a product,
your front line employees need to be operating at a heightened level of readiness , they need
to be able to identify opportunities, they need to understand the best conditions and
environs for a successful pitch, they need to play to their strengths and ultimately there are
only two things involved in the execution phase, timing and camouflage- if timing is
everything then camouflaging your approach is a close second, whatever your approach, it
must surprise and it must inspire and it has got to get people excited.

4. A Lions heels do not touch the ground when it walks–
I have seen too many an executive, senior manager and CEO use their titles, pay grades and
seniority to intimidate and harass employees into seeing things the way they do and doing
things the way they wish them to be done. He who shouts loudest…
This not only serves to shut down people but also creates a hostility and fear that can never
be associated with a conducive working environment no matter how subtle your bullying is.
This type of behaviour stifles just about everything good that can come from people as they
revert to flight an fight adrenaline bursts just to get out the way and stay out of trouble. You
want people to open up not shut down. You want to lead by influencing not forcing. Your
corporate culture depends on it.The take outs from the lion are simple, let your walk
amongst your subordinates be light- tip toe like the lion- be gentle- Your people will
remember the way you make them feel and that feeling will by and large dictate how they
treat and respond to others in the organization including your customers. Shouting,
screaming, belittling – do you really believe that such behavior is sustainable- do you really
believe that this behaviour will build a culture of customer excellence and create a sense of
community? When the chips are down and when you are hardest hit- if you can keep your
head and influence positively this will inspire and motivate your people at every level to do
the same.
More importantly your presence should not burden or limit your people, it should at the very
least energize them.
Neither do you have to shout the loudest, ridicule in the most serious or show your
discontent to the maximum intensity no matter what has gone wrong or no matter who is to
blame- tread lightly and tread wisely. Besides its the more emotionally intelligent way to
behave.
A malelions mane is an indication of its age,the darker the mane the older thelion–
The male lion is a symbol of power, strength and is a fearsome adversary, the male lions
mane is as much a part of who he is, what he is and why he exists.
There is a deep respect that is commanded by a male lion.A few take outs- respect is earned
not because of your title, pay grade, connections or alumni. It’s earned because of who you

5. are, it’s earned because of your authenticity and integrity.
It’s earned because of the behaviour you model in the organisation and in the community at
large. It is the example you set.
It is not something you actively trumpet or shout from the rooftops- think, “I am important- I
am powerful”, it is something so intrinsic that it manifests itself in the most remarkable of
ways…in a very dark mane…on a very wise head, on very broad shoulders all upon a
remarkable heart.
Be brave, be wise, be kind and be remarkable!
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