Babur was a 15th-century conqueror and world traveler. He made his name in the Indian subcontinent and later became the ruler of Central Asia. Babar ka janm kahan hua tha? Andijan, Uzbekistan. His autobiography, Babur Nama, is one of the most popular books ever written in Asia. In it, he describes what it means to be a true leader, as well as talks about leadership throughout history and across cultures.
What is leadership?
Some regard leadership as a skill, others as a trait, still others as the power of God. Whatever your view, it is important to understand what “leadership” means. And perhaps more importantly, why it is important. The concept of leadership has changed drastically through history. At one point, leadership was an ad hoc affair – the chief of this tribe, the leader of that town would come up with a plan and take charge of that situation.
Seven Awesome Things You Can Learn From Babur :
1. Learn To Live In The Moment
Babur’s life was a never-ending series of adventures. And yet his autobiography, Baburnama , is surprisingly free of long-winded accounts of battle, or even reflection on the past. Instead we get a blow by blow account of the places he lived in and things that happened while he stayed there.
This is pure excitement – an almost stream of consciousness type narrative – but it also lends itself to being read as a textbook on living in the moment. Babur’s advice to his readers: “I am not trying to figure out the next steps in my life. If I have time and opportunity, I take them as they come”.
2. Don’t Be Afraid To Take Risks
Babur resolved to never become a slave, but his autobiography is filled with tales of trying to get out of the sticky situations he found himself in. Always looking for the exit strategy, Babur was incredibly willing to take risks – something that most people today would find impossible. He could likely have become one of the wealthiest kings in history if he had played it safe, but instead he forged himself into a legendary conqueror.
3. Learn To Focus On What Is Important
It was typical for Babur when he took charge of a new town, for him and his men to simply eat up their supply and then leave. But the more he ran into resistance, the more he began to rethink his strategy. He came to realize that what was important was not so much the properties that were taken from him, but rather understanding how and why people wanted him out of their town in the first place. This was a huge refocus for Babur – one that led him to change how he viewed his role as ruler and how he viewed those who opposed him.
4. You Can’t Run Your Life By Others
Babur spent most of his time trying to convince others that he could do things better than they could. But following this advice would have resulted in disaster on an epic scale. Babur’s advice tells us that it is important to know when to stop listening and start following your gut.
5. Try To Have A Sense Of Humor
Babur’s autobiography is full of the most interesting events – he describes with great detail many of his encounters with wild animals and the people he met throughout his life, but what stands out the most are his encounters with other human beings. Babur was always quick with a joke or a witty quip, and he used this sense of humor to make even his toughest opponents laugh. It was said that nobody laughed more than Babur, and that was one of the reasons he was so successful as a leader.
6. Stop Trying To Be Perfect
Babur was the greatest living warrior of his day, and yet most of his books are filled with stories about how he didn’t kill anyone, or how he tried to do things like steal horses rather than violently take them. He was so good at being a great warrior that it caused him to be unduly cautious.
But Babur’s life story is one of the strangest examples of how we can go astray if we seek perfection in every decision and action – as soon as he gets caught up in trying to make sure everything is perfect he starts missing opportunities and then blames everyone around him for his mistakes.
7. Adapt To The World Around You
Babur was a man of almost unlimited ambition. He wanted to conquer countries, but he also wanted to learn about the world and people. And nowhere is this more evident than in his constant war with the Chinese. Babur often found himself in conflict with the Chinese, and he knew that if he wasn’t careful it could lead to war again sometime.
