“If words come out of the heart, they will enter the heart. If they are spoken just from the mouth, they will not even reach the ears.” Al Suhrawardi

Leadership, through the eyes of the Sufi, is about caring. It is not just how much you know that matters, but also how much you care and love. It is caring and loving that enable us to get the best out of others because people feel the connection and genuineness. When we show people we care, we build trust with them. Trust is the glue that holds relationships together.

A Sufi, by keeping an open mind, values different approaches and is not fixed or narrow in his views. Getting the best out of others is emblematic of true leadership. A Sufi inspires people to great heights by believing in their abilities, noticing their efforts, and commending them for their contributions.

A Sufi realizes that the best way to ignite a spark is to awaken what is asleep in others. Generally, people know what is right but need a little encouragement to get started.

The Sufi gets the best out of others by giving of himself without expectation or recompense. The difference need not be big; every small deed counts. It creates momentum and has a ripple effect. When we are kind to an employee, he will be kind to his colleagues, customers, and family. His colleagues, customers, and family will be well disposed to people they encounter. Your kindness will snowball. It is like throwing a small pebble in the ocean — the ripple affects the entire ocean. Just a small pebble! Such is the effect of a good deed.

(Excerpt from the book, The One Minute Sufi by Azim Jamal)