There were about 70 scientists working on a hectic project. All of them were frustrated due to the pressure at work and the demands of their boss, but everyone were loyalto him and never thought of abandoning the project.
One day, a scientist came to his boss and requested, “Sir, I have promised my children that I will take them to an exhibition going on in our town today, so I would like to leave office early by 5.30 pm.”
Boss replied “Sure, you may leave early.”
The Scientist started working and continued his work after lunch. As usual he got involved to such an extent that he ended up looking at his watch only when he felt he was close to completion. The time was 8.30pm! Suddenly he remembered the promise he had made to his children.
He looked for his boss, he was not around. Having told him in the morning itself, he quickly packed up and left for home.
Deep within himself, he felt guilty for having disappointed his children. He reached home and they were not there. His wife alone was sitting in the hall and reading a magazine.
The situation was tense. Any attempt of conversation could boomerang on him.
His wife looked towards him and asked, “Would you like to have coffee or shall I straight away serve dinner if you are hungry?”
The scientist replied, “If you would like to have coffee, I too will have, but what about our children?”
Wife replied, “You don’t know? Your manager was here to pick them up at 5.15pm.”
What had really happened was…
The boss who granted him permission to leave early was observing him working passionately at 5.00pm. He thought to himself, this person will not leave work, but if he has promised his children they must visit the exhibition. So he took the lead in taking them to the exhibition.
Such instances lead to a high level of loyalty, commitment and unity amongst the workers. That is why all the scientists continued to work with their boss even though the stress was tremendous.
Any guesses, who the boss was?
He was none other than,
Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam
