Rahul Chandawarkar is a delightful fellow. The kind of guy who can ensure that there isn’t a moment of silence in what might look like a never-ending evening bash! He is an MBA who went to work for a bank, but then chose to opt out of the corporate rat race to chase his passion—journalism. He now edits a newspaper and lives in the city of his choice, Pune. In one of our early meetings, Rahul recalled his experiences from his first job and told me about his first boss. While still in college, he had started off as a rookie reporter with Sportsworld—the magazine that Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi used to edit.
His boss was David McMahon, the assistant editor at Sportsworld. And Rahul recalled with great enthusiasm the one trait that marked David out as someone rather special: his willingness to bet on youth! And here’s the story:
When the Indian cricket team travelled to Pakistan in 1982-83, every newspaper sent out its most senior reporter to cover the tour. After all, this was a big tour. And whom did David choose to send? A young not-yet-out-of-his-teens lad called Mudar Patherya.
Mudar went on to do a great job, and his youthful exuberance, natural curiosity and the desire to ‘live up to David’s trust’ ensured that Sportsworld had some of the finest coverage of the tour.
That a youngster will go the extra mile, do just a little bit more to prove his worth, was established on the tour to the West Indies some years later. Mudar the writer managed to pull off a scoop—as a photographer! One Sunday morning, while the senior folks were either relaxing in the hotel or sightseeing, Mudar drove out to watch young West Indian kids play beach cricket. He joined in the fun, and when his turn came to bat, he was surveying the field when he saw a familiar figure standing at slip: the big man—Viv Richards—himself. He quickly clicked a picture of the king of West Indian cricket—barechested and having a blast with the kids on the beach—with his amateur camera. The picture made it to the front page of Anandabazar Patrika and Mudar had another exclusive story to his credit. David’s faith in the youngster had been vindicated.
Mudar went on to become one of our finest cricket writers, and now runs a successful financial communication services company with his wife in Kolkata. And I am sure he will acknowledge the role that ‘early break’—that vote of confidence from David and the management of Sportsworld—played in his eventual success.
Mudar wasn’t the only one. When it was time for Wimbledon, David, himself a terrific tennis writer, chose to pick another rookie: Rohit Brijnath. Rohit apparently did not even have a passport when he was told that he’d be covering Wimbledon! Rohit went on to become one of the best sports writers India has produced, and is also the co-author of Abhinav Bindra’s acclaimed autobiography.
Most good leaders have a knack for spotting great talent. But it’s the exceptional leaders who bet on that young talent ahead of its time. A big assignment, a special project or an out-of-turn promotion, and suddenly that young talent becomes hot property. Many successful people owe their meteoric rise not just to their talent, but also to that leader who was willing to bet on them. And when a leader places those bets on young talent, the whole team benefits. Notice that the story of David’s greatness was narrated to me not by Mudar or Rohit, but by someone else who was on that team! And that’s not all. When I shared the story with David, he gave credit for it to the publisher of Anandabazar Patrika, Aveek Sarkar, who had given him the early break. David was only twenty-four when Aveek Sarkar made him the assistant editor of Sportsworld!
The bet may not always come good. And when it goes wrong, the leader and the young prodigy often pay a price. And here’s the irony: if the leader plays safe he doesn’t really attract any criticism for not giving the youngster a chance. Which is why it takes a special kind of leader and a courageous one at that, to place that bet. And then the fearlessness of youth takes over. The enthusiasm and the desire to prove the leader right usually pave the way for the youngster’s success.
The day after I heard the David McMahon story, India was fighting to win a Test match in Bangalore. The big hope—Sehwag—was out cheaply. And when the entire crowd at the Karnataka State Cricket Association ground roared to welcome the No. 3 batsman—local boy Rahul Dravid—they were in for a surprise. Instead of Rahul, out came the debutant Cheteshwar Pujara. Pujara had failed in the first innings and yet was now being trusted by his captain to play a defining innings. And he did. His 72-run knock helped India beat Australia. My mind went back to David and Mudar and Rohit.
Had Pujara failed, it would have been easy to say that Dhoni had erred. After all, the youngster had failed in the first innings. Why did the skipper put him under unnecessary pressure? Why change the batting order? Why . . . and the questions would have been many. Hindsight is usually pure genius.
Which is why you need to doff your hat to Dhoni, David and others like them. Bosses who bet on unripe fruit! It takes courage to bet on a youngster.
So think back. When it was your turn to take a punt on the kid, did you play safe or did you place your bets?
And hey, remember the guy who bet on you? You should probably pick up the phone and say thank you.
Clearly, our world needs more Dhonis and Davids. Make sure you add your name to that list!
Most good leaders have a knack for spotting great talent. But it’s the exceptional leaders who bet on that young talent ahead of its time. It takes courage to bet on unripe fruit!