From T-Rex to winged elephants, how industry veterans are deploying metaphors to offer work-life and leadership lessons

Some industry leaders are getting innovative and forthcoming in offering work-life and leadership lessons to professionals as the future of work reshapes and empathy and value proposition for employees gains traction.

Big names including Vineet Nayar, Ravi Venkatesan, Indira Nooyi, and Anil Agarwal are writing and sharing work-life lessons with metaphors such as T-Rex, winged elephants, butterfly, and chair, which are finding instant connect on social media and professional networking sites as they can be applied at work or personal life.

“Don’t be a T-Rex in the world of Avatars. Dinosaurs are a constant reminder to our race that if we do not adapt to ‘change’ we will become extinct too. The only way to flourish no matter what, is to adapt, learn and evolve,” Ravi Venkatesan, former chairman of Microsoft India and Bank of Baroda, wrote on a LinkedIn post.

He further wrote that the world is changing continuously. “What was relevant 10 years back is probably redundant and overtaken by newer things. How to match the pace of this ever evolving world? By keeping an open mind to learn and adapt."

Vineet Nayar, a former chief executive of HCL, mentioned the three things that get people excited about workplace: “Respect for self, space to perform and an equal opportunity to grow.”

“If these three things come together then the team is unstoppable. In my life, I have worked with many such unstoppable teams. It’s magical and very inspiring to be in that high energy zone. Try it once and you will want it more and more,” he wrote on a Facebook post.

Sharing a picture of an elephant with butterfly wings, Nayar wrote that “treating people the right way does more to increase your business than any amount of money thrown at advertising or marketing ever could”.

Indira Nooyi, former CEO of PepsiCo, has given yet another valuable advice, which can be applied at work and in life. She believes the best way to get a seat at the table is to “pull up a chair”, which means actively seek out opportunities instead of waiting for them.

In a short video on social media, the business leader said, “I believe the best way to get a seat at the table is to pull up a chair. Don’t wait to be invited because the invitation may never come…Actively seek out opportunities to participate and take every opportunity you can to share your talent and unique perspective."

Anil Agarwal, founder and chairman of Vedanta Resources Ltd, who has of late been very active on social media, has a put a tagline on his LinkedIn profile that reads: “Agar aap sapne dekhoge nahi, toh sapne poore kaise honge?” (roughly translates as: If won’t see dreams, how will they get fulfilled).

Agarwal has been sharing his entrepreneurial journey, the challenges he faced and how he built on his businesses to inspire his followers and readers.