By Mahatma Das ACBSP
1. When taking over a position, department, project, preaching center, temple, etc., to immediately begin making drastic changes.
2. To play favorites or to speak against or criticize certain sections of devotees.
3. To do or say anything that will instill a lack of trust in a devotee’s spiritual master.
4. To not give devotees facility to offer suggestions and ideas, voice opinions, or express observations in a way that will be given attention and be responded to.
5. To expect devotees to be enthusiastic about a service that you either do not encourage or facilitate.
6. To breach devotees trust in you by not doing something you promised – or bt lying to them.
7. Not attending all the temple programs (and expecting others to attend).
8. To have a budget that exceeds your income.
9. To create overheads so large that to maintain the project minimizes the preaching.
10. To not take interest in devotee’s spiritual and material welfare and to not have time to deal with their problems and needs.
11. To make it difficult for devotees to see you.
12. To give devotees very little association.
13. To deny women the same facilities given to the men i.e. to make women second class citizens in your temple.
14. To serve bad, insufficient, or unhealthy prasadam or to serve the wrong type of prasadam for a particular situation or time of day.
15. To allow devotees to live in the temple who are not either fully engaged, exemplary in behavior, or are overly critical of authority.
16. To make plans and not let all the devotees know.
17. To exclude devotees from participating in meetings or sections of meetings where they have special qualifications or experience in the area you are discussing.
18. To not hold regular istagosthis
19. To not engage the congregation sufficiently, specifically those who are very materially qualified
20. To always try to do everything yourself or with a few of the same devotees and thus become overextended and overburdened. In other words, to not delegate, empower and train.
22. To make devotees feel they are incompetent or unintelligent.
23. To give a devotee a service, not train them, then expect them to be expert.
24. To not allow a devotees to engage in a service they are qualified to do because you feel they are too young, they haven’t been devotees long enough, they are women or they are from an ethnic group you look down on.
25. To expect devotees to follow you only because of your position without setting a proper example and without developing love and trust.
27. To take advantage of others and to have special facilities that other devotees don’t have.
28. To expand so quickly that devotees are so overworked and overburdened that they cannot peacefully execute their normal sadhana and hearing and chanting and that you as a manager are in a constant state of anxiety over how everything will go on.
29. To make an effort to make new devotees without creating proper facilities for them.
30. To minimize your sadhana and the time you spend hearing and chanting.
31. To not have regular departmental meetings with all the devotees in the department.
32. To not have clearly set goals and mission statements for the temple and its departments.
33. To not engage devotees in consideration of their asramas.
34. To not monitor the behavior of devotees who are preaching and distributing books in public.
35. To send a younger devotee to preach at a college or university without an older devotee.
36. To not train devotees how to appear and behave in public and how to deal with people as proper representatives of Iskcon.
37. To allow undersireable people to the Sunday feast i.e people who will make our regular guests feel uncomfortable (these include the homeless who do not bath regularly. Other facilities can be made to give them prasadam).
38. To not facilitate sufficient hearing and chanting.
39. To be enthusiastic about organizing programs without reference to a mission statement or long range goals i.e. organizing programs that do not help further the objectives of the temple or project.
40. To jeopardize relationships to accomplish service.
41. To not have an evening program.
42. To not have Krsna book and hot milk.
43. To not have regular readings of Nectar of Devotion.
44. To not have a daily thorough cleaning of the temple and asrama (this doesn’t mean only the floors)
45. To have superfast and wild Sunday Feast kirtans chanted to melodies that are difficult follow and with excessive chanting of mantras other than the maha mantra.
46. To not listen to the suggestions of guests and members.
47. To not manage through a temple board i.e. to think you know everything and don’t need input from others or to cancel or not hold meetings because you don’t believe in or like meetings.
48. To preach in a way that discourages women, householders, or gurukulis.
49. To regularly be late for meetings and appointments
50. To regularly and spontaneously change your plans.
51. To not make an effort to create good relationships with your neighbors.
52. To be stubborn.
53. To be inflexible and/or unreasonable.
54. To not properly facilitate book distribution
55. To not foresee potential problems before they arise.
56. To push programs to make money that are not honest, could jeopardize our reputation, or that burn out devotees.
57. To stress “work now samadhi later” in such a way that it eclipses “purity is the force.”
58. To have the present gurus’ vyasa-puja celebrations on a grander scale than Srila Prabhupada’s or to minimize or not support their vyas-puja celebrations.
59. To make life members, but not take care of them or to preach only for the purpose of collecting money without interest in the person’s spiritual advancement.
60. To be attached to doing things a certain way only because it is always the way they have been done without considering whether it is actually best, proper, or what Prabhupada really wants.
61. To be conservative when you should be liberal and to be liberal when you should be conservative.
62. To not associate with your leaders in any other environment than work i.e. not eating together, hearing and chanting together, or doing something recreational together.
63. To not allow devotees to evaluate your performance as a leader and suggest ways in which you could improve your service.
64. To not be accountable for spending money.
65. To be spontaneous in your decisions and plans.
66. To regularly start and stop projects
67. To allow temple devotees to be negligent about following the morning program
68. To inhibit or minimize the service of qualified devotees in order to maintain more control of the temple or project.
69. To invest a lot time, energy, money and men in a project or temple and then walk out on it in the middle.
70. To establish Deities when there are an insufficient number of brahmanas in the temple.
71. To allow people to stay in the temple as guests or bhaktas without running a police record on them.
72. To make major decisions based on an unverified assumption.
73. To base important programs or projects on devotees who have not proven themselves reliable, or who are not capable in that area.
74. To have devotees engaged in services they are not suited for.
75. To be negligent in setting all legal matters pertaining to the temple in order.
76. To do anything illegal.
77. To have someone cooking for the devotees who knows nothing about health.
78. To serve prasad that excites sexual desire.
79. To encourage people to live in the temple who would make more advancement living outside.
80. To discourage devotees from going to India.
81. To ignore things that are going wrong because it is too much trouble to correct them.
82. To not thank or encourage devotees for their special efforts or austerities or to thank some and forget to mention others who worked equally as hard.
83. To not resolve conflicts between devotees working under you, especially when they ask for your help.
84. To make non constructive criticism of devotees behind their back in a loose and casual way.
85. To act on what others say about a devotee without first discussing the suspected problem with the devotee.
86. To delegate another person to communicate something that to a devotee that you should tell that devotee yourself.
87. To utilize your position to take nectar services for yourself to the exclusion of others who are equally or more qualified and who are anxious to render these services.
88. To allow unfit people to move into the temple.
89. To not be selective enough about who gives class (ultra conservative or fanatical preachers) especially when many guests are staying at the temple.
90. To not insure that standard melodies are chanted at the appropriate aratikas.
91. To be closed to new ideas.
92. To not train devotees in Vaisnava etiquette especially in regards to relating to senior devotees.
93. To not invite senior devotees to visit your temple or to invite them but not provide them with the facilities they need or not organize sufficient preaching programs.
94. To not provide facilities for a dedicated temple devotee who can not render service for a prolonged period of time due to illness and/or to make them feel guilty for not being able to do any service.
95. To not observe commitments to devotees that were made by previous leaders.
96. To not clearly inform prospective devotees what is expected of them if they wish to live in the temple.
97. To give more importance to accomplishing the goals of your project than to the well being of devotees.
98. To not assume some responsiblility for the causes of devotees leaving Iskcon.
99. To not learn, develop and practice effective communication and relationship skills.
100. To not have the capacity to work well with those you don’t agree with (i.e. to operate under the paradign that we must sufficiently agree to be able to work together)
101. To not be able to take complaints, criticism, etc. without either defending oneself or retaliating against those who complained
102. To need to be right and prove others wrong
103. To not have a written code of ethics (honor) for your management team (a code the team develops by which they operate).
104. To make plans or resolutions that will affect a large number of devotees or congregational members without first running those plans by them to see how they respond.
105. To make assumptions (beliefs you have that are not founded on actual proven facts) about individuals and base your actions towards them and opinions of them on those assumptions.
106. To not acquire the skills necessary to run a meeting efficiently
107. To be reistant to change even when current systems, modalities, strategies, ways of thinking, etc.are not bringing desired results.
108. To believe that since things have always been a certain way that is the only way they can be.
end item body
DISQUS comments block
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11 Responses to “108 Mistakes I Have Made or I Have Seen Made by Other Leaders”
- Suresh das says : Log in to Reply
Jun 24, 2006 at 10:47 pm
In Reply to Mahatma Prabhu’s Article: Management Mistakes I Have Made or I Have Seen Made by Other Leaders – his ideas would make a great pamphlet on management for any organization or business.
Alas, though, where will we find such high-level managers and devotees from our current stock to run our movement according to his principles?
I was impressed by the thoroughness of his list, as I have seen many of the things he spoke of take place in the past, leading to losses of many good, sincere devotees from our ranks. I also felt sadness too, because I had to accept I could never be a temple devotee again – I am simply not of high enough caliber now, although his list gives me a set of goals to strive for.
I realized from studying his list that my best position is probably assisting and supporting Sankirtan efforts, and practicing from the outside.
Suresh das - #comment-##
- Tamoharadasa says : Log in to Reply
Jun 26, 2006 at 6:39 pm
Haribol! Nice to see that you are taking your responsibilities seriously. However, this is not AT&T, so if you think this is a business, think again, please. Srila Prabhupada never ran criminal re4cord checks as many of us had records; this movement is a revolutionary movement, and we priamarily reach the disenfranchised so far as the coporate sectors go. We are not boot kissers. - #comment-##
- tulasi-priya says : Log in to Reply
Jun 27, 2006 at 7:48 pm
Is this just a bit of ISKCON lore, or did Srila Prabhupada say, “No lazies and no crazies (in the temple)”? One might add, “no convicted felons” to the mix.
While it’s not necessary that a person with a police record be prohibited from living in the temple, wouldn’t it be prudent to investigate so that management could make an intelligent decision? You might allow a bhakta who was arrested for participating in a civil disobedience action to spend the night, but if he was arrested or convicted of rape, child molestation, or assault, wouldn’t management, what to speak of the temple residents, want to know about it before the guy was allowed to move in?
I’ve seen and heard of enough episodes of violence, criminal behavior, and severe mental illness in temples to be in favor background checks to see if someone is law-abiding and/or sane. The information obtained should be sensitively dealt with, not turned into prajalpa-fodder. It would also give the authorities a better idea of how to deal with troubled newcomers. People with serious problems don’t have to live in the temple, potentially compromising its safety and integrity, to make spiritual advancement. No temple needs an extra pot-washer that badly.
Thanks for the great insights, Mahatma prabhu. - #comment-##
- Tamoharadasa says : Log in to Reply
Jun 28, 2006 at 6:15 pm
Dearest Tulsi Priya Devi Dasi Prabhu; please recall the stories of Jagai and Madhai, who were murderers of tjhe worst sort, yet they were accepted as pure Vaisnavas after receiving the causeless mercy of Nityananda Prabhu. What also of Murari? His qualification was submission to Narada Muni, not submission to the demonic police records or their chain of so-called authority. Why set a precedent of trusting the self-absorbed politicians and corrupt system of oppression of individuals that is too much the current state of police affairs, by adopting their techniques and judgements?
There are no material qualifications for performing devotional service. It seems to me that you advocate introducing material-authority-submission and changes that are not in line with our traditions. Better to err in favor of mercy than to become priggish conservatives following mundane authorities. Otherwise, I have myself printed Mahatma Prabhus suggestions to keep as very handy tips for good management. - #comment-##
- Suresh das says : Log in to Reply
Jun 29, 2006 at 2:08 am
It was just proposing the idea for marketing your ideas as a book. Many are specific to our temple management, but many could be used by any business or organization.
There are many similar books with a code of ethics which are quite popular today, well read and studied by thousands of people all over the world, such as the “Art of War”, “Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun”, or the “One Minute Manager”, each with some things applicable to today and some things which are ancient, archaic, or very specialized.
It might be a novelty to publish the codes as a book, so that the public could see the inner workings of our movement, and understand it in a more personal way, while at the same time defraying the cost of publication, so temple management could receive the benefits of the advice in a low-cost way.
Like Yamuna Devi’s Cookbook, thousands of people got a look inside our movement from a different perspective they might not otherwise see – the Kitchen. You book could also offer a glimpse inside the management of our movement.
Of course, supplying some anecdotes for each “mistake” would add humor as well as show practical examples of what has happened in the past and perhaps offer some solutions as well.
As an example, in 1973 I was in the Denver temple. A new devotee joined – “Bhakta Vinny”. In those days no one would think of running a Police Report for anyone. Bhakta Vinny was a quiet guy, although he was tall and powerful in stance. No one had any idea that his presence in our temple might spell trouble. His behavior was a little odd though when we went out on Harinam. We were selling flowers for donations. Vinny was selling the broken stems without the flowers for $5 each. He was giving people very threatening looks like “this is an offer you can’t refuse”.
A short time later the “Family” showed up at the door and took poor Vinny away. Vinny was never heard from again, and is probably today with the fishes.
So the idea of running a Police Report probably makes sense in retrospect.
Suresh da - #comment-##
- tulasipriya says : Log in to Reply
Jun 30, 2006 at 11:30 am
Your points are certainly all valid and correct. I wasn´t advocating «submission» to any mundane authority, simply the getting of information on prospective temple residents, so that the temple remains a safe and sane environment. Not everyone who joins the KC movement has an immediate, total, and permanent change of heart as did Jagai and Madhai. If I were a temple president, I would give priority to the welfare of the devotees who were already under my care.
I look forward to your comments, but I won´t be making any more on this topic. Thank you for responding. - #comment-##
- mahatma says : Log in to Reply
Jun 30, 2006 at 6:57 pm
Tamohara,
My point of having a legal background check is for the safety and sanity of the devotees and temple. It wasn´t intended to limit the mercy of Lord Caitanya. It would be rare that a sincere soul would be denied the opportunity to live in a temple because of the results of the background check. There are very few dangerous persons trying to move into our temples, but it does occasionaly happen.
Mahatma das - #comment-##
- mahatma says : Log in to Reply
Jun 30, 2006 at 6:58 pm
Suresh,
Any ideas of how to publish and market the book? If so, real life examples of those mistakes would be in order.
Mahatma das - #comment-##
- Suresh das says : Log in to Reply
Jul 1, 2006 at 7:54 pm
Srila Jiva Goswami created a method of teaching Sanskrit grammer, so that the student would become completely Krishna conscious and learn grammer at the same time. If you published your ideas in a book form it would give people inside and outside our movement a chance to see the inner workings of our organization and to see how much is involved in actually running a spiritual organization.
I didn’t mean that each of your lessons had to be funny. A paragraph or two of examples of what has gone wrong in the past and how the teaching can be practically applied would add interest.
The main point I was trying to express is that any organization or business could benefit from your insights. - #comment-##
- dayananda says : Log in to Reply
Jul 1, 2006 at 10:08 pm
How about number a number 109, which I attribute to Prabhupada’s example: careful in management and liberal in preaching. (Bg 11.55 on risk and SB 1.7.40 lect 10-1-76 on care). Thank you for your needed analysis of careful managment. Yet I still need to ask what risks have we taken lately? Now that we are mature, can’t we also be careful and bold? - #comment-##
- mahatma says : Log in to Reply
Jul 2, 2006 at 12:53 pm
Dayananda,
Certainly we should take calcuated risks. And yes, I stopped at 108 but certainly there are other mistakes that have been made and are yet to be made. I feel it is important that we learn from our past mistakes.
Your servant, - Mahatma das
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