#9 Mastery Over Knowledge: The Silent Driver Behind Business Success and Leadership

Since every general of his era knew these matters, why not all were victorious? Likewise, why many managers who had studied business strategy and management also not as successful as they should be? The answer: They lack mastery.

Knowledge isn’t wisdom

I had said before, knowledge isn’t enough. Wisdom comes only if we have a passionate desire to learn. Do this by asking questions and reflecting on the answers. I told those part-time BBBA and MBA students I taught at the Singapore Institute of Management: While every literate person can read, only a few can really apply what they had read. Hence, many businessmen and executives may claim to have read Sun Tzu’s Art of War but only those few with passionate desire can master it to attain success.

Arrogance

I have found it is inevitable that the higher people climb in life’s status, the more arrogant they become. Their heads will swell and conceit will make them think they are the greatest and all their decisions are right.

It is really almost impossible to be successful without believing we are better than others. If we want to remain successful, we must regularly remind ourselves that while our efforts have made us successful, we still should be grateful to GOD for the circumstances, and to those who matter in our past and continued success, notably our employees and customers. Every CEO should remember his company is in business because his people are working and customers are buying.

When H.S. Teh was Managing Director of Toray-owned Penfabric Sdn Bhd, he remembered and so, valued his staff and traveled frequently to meet customers.

A by-product of arrogance is ignorance. Just as past dictatorial kings rarely got honest opinions from their sycophantic courtiers, arrogant managers today cannot hope for truthful views from their fawning staff. The more arrogant they are, the more layers will be created to reward the “yes-men” and the more they will be kept in the dark. Bad news will be kept from them as no one wants to be blamed for spoiling their moods. They will only be told things they like to hear.

Mastery is the key

To master the Art of War or anything, you must have the passionate desire to ask questions and think over the answers.

When I first met 20-year-old Tan Yeow Chuan in 2008, I was impressed by his inquisitive mind. He was then assisting his sister-in-law at her Maxis agency, and he would ply me with questions whenever I went to his shop. He had learned I had written many books on business and management. The quality of his questions moved me to give him one of my books.

When I heard he had read my book over several times, I tested him. As he passed my test, I gave him another book. As he has a passionate desire to learn, I was not surprised when he went on to become Marketing Manager for Super Enterprise Sdn Bhd. The Maxis agency was not enough for a man with such passionate desire to learn. Then, in 2010, he joined MJ Materials Technology Sdn Bhd as Marketing Director. He continued to visit me to ask more work-related questions.

All those questions convinced me that it would not take too long for him to venture out on his own. True enough, in 2014, he set up his own company, UDA Materials Sdn Bhd. Today at the age of 37, he also owns three other companies – Titan Materials Sdn Bhd, ADA Biotech Sdn Bhd, and Techom Metal Sdn Bhd.

Many read my books but few have the passionate desire like Yeow Chuan to ask questions, reflect on the answers and act.