Yayati Syndrome

Mental Strength is very critical for success. A strong mind has to maintain a level of calmness,should be positive,should have the ability to regain poise if the equilibrium is disturbed or have the ability to maintain equanimity in the midst of all the external vagaries of work and social existence. Internal constancy and peace are the pre-requisites for a healthy stress-free mind.

Let us see what stands in the way of a person acquiring mental strength;
Greed - for power, position, prestige and money.
Envy - regarding others' achievements, success, rewards.
Egotism - about one's own accomplishments.
Suspicion, anger and frustration.
Anguish through comparisons.

Enhanced competition, speed and a phenomenal rate of change define today’s business. The reaction time for a manager is very less and the pressure to produce results is immense. This leads to a Manager adopting short cuts to achieve success at the risk of compromising his value system. He might resort to opt for immoral means like tax evasion, illegitimate financial holdings, being “economical with the truth”, deliberate oversight in the audit, and window dressing of financials and so on.

This is the “yayati syndrome”. Mahabharata has a story about a king by the name of Yayati who, in order to revel in the endless enjoyment of flesh exchanged his old age with the youth of his obliging youngest son for thousand years. However, he found the pursuit of sensual enjoyments ultimately unsatisfying and came back to his son pleading him to take back his youth. This “yayati syndrome” shows the conflict between externally directed acquisitions (extrinsic motivation) and inner value and conscience (intrinsic motivation.).

And there in lies the answer to the question of whether one should adopt a strategy of ‘Win at all costs’. Strengthen your minds, uphold the business ethics-(compiled from various sources)