The Lion and the Sheep
A lioness was hunting a flock of sheep. She was heavily pregnant, and as she pounced on the flock, she gave birth to a lion cub and died due to exhaustion. The lion cub was surrounded by sheep, who raised it. The cub grew up bleating like a sheep, ate grass, and played with them. Over the years, it grew into an enormous lion but still mistook itself for a sheep.
One day a big old lion was hunting and saw a flock of sheep. He licked his lips and was about to attack them when he saw a huge young lion among them. He saw him eating grass and bleating like a sheep and was puzzled. The older lion stalked the younger lion and ran after him. The sheep ran away, bleating in fear, and the young lion did the same. The older lion hunted him down and pounced on him. He dragged him away from the herd of sheep. He asked the younger lion why he was behaving like a silly sheep. Ignoring the younger lion’s protest, he drags him to a pool of water and shows him you are exactly the same as me. I am a lion, so you have to be a lion. After a few moments, the young lion calmed down and realized he resembled the older lion. The older lion then roared and asked the younger one to imitate him. The younger one roared back in response and realized that he was indeed a lion.
Applying the Story at Work
Have you ever met people at work who say, “I was not hired to do this work” or “this was not a part of my job description”? My entire career has been built on doing stuff that was not a part of my job description. Most people you meet at work are very attached to their titles. I am a “product manager,” and my scope is limited to working with customers. I am a “product designer,” and you should hire someone who focuses on research. I am a “front-end” developer and don’t work with backend technologies.
If this were not enough, you also meet people who say I am a lead programmer, and this is an architect’s responsibility or vice versa. People are so attached to their titles and roles that they define their entire life experience based on it.
This is especially dangerous as you rise through the ranks of an organization. You hold the title of “director,” “vice president,” and “board member” so close to your heart that it takes over your life. Try a simple experiment if you ever want to disassociate with your identity. Check into a five-star hotel wearing your best business suit. They will treat you like a king and ensure they cater to every whim and fancy. Now walk out of the hotel and go to a local shop. Buy and wear the clothes a person from a rural hamlet generally wears, and add some grime to your face for effect. Now try walking into the same hotel. You would be lucky to make it to the lobby, let alone your room. Was the person who checked into the room any different from you? If you think I am exaggerating for effect, check out a book called How Starbucks Saved My Life. Here is the blurb of the book.
Michael Gates Gill had it all by his fifties: a mansion in the suburbs, a wife and loving children, a six-figure salary, and an Ivy League education. Within a few years, he lost his job, got divorced, and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. With no money or health insurance, he got a job at Starbucks.
Attachments to roles and titles has another significant side effect. You equate your role’s success with an organization’s success. I read a fascinating real-life case study in a leadership development class.
A software product company was facing challenges after launching a highly anticipated product. The head of the software development team and the support team were almost at each other’s throats. They blamed each other for the significant increase in customer issues. After all other interventions failed, the CEO ordered both the leaders to swap jobs for one month. They were both shocked but complied and realized the pressures each role entailed after just fifteen days. They also discovered that their final goal is not to build the best technical product or support organization. It was to contribute to the holistic success of the organization.
Regarding my career, every job change or promotion was based on things beyond the scope of my role. I learned about managing lab environments in a cloud-based ecosystem. I help pioneer and develop a virtual-reality application to demonstrate use-cases for software products. I developed a methodology to create lean teams that blend instructional design and technical writing. My job description never has these requirements, but they were the most fun I had at work. All this helped me have a solid career in my profession after a very average educational experience. So the next time you have a new idea, don’t tie it to your role or job description. Go for it and see where the new skills take you.
Esoteric Meaning
Why did the young lion never realize he was a lion? Since sheep surrounded him, he mistook his own identity as a sheep. The sheep represent the five elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Space. The consciousness is nested in the body, comprising the five elements. Hence, we often mistake ourselves for being the body or the mind instead of being pure consciousness. The guru or the holy texts come to your rescue as a lion. They show you the truth, and practices such as meditation and Sadhana help you realize how you are the lion and not the sheep. The story is not about a sheep trying to become a lion. The lion is simply awakening to its true nature. Similarly, you don’t have to become Brahman or move from finite to infinite. You merely have to realize your true nature. The roar of the young lion is “Aham Brahmasmi” or “I am Brahman”. Watch this video to learn more about the questions you can ask to discover your truth.
