Auto-generated transcript:My brothers and sisters, we are on the topic of decision making or decision analysis based on the Shura method.
So let's see first of all, what is the Shura method?
As we said, Shura is mutual consultation or decision making by consultation.
Now, there is a method to do that.
And the method is that the people who are all the stakeholders for that decision must be part of the Shura.
Shura is the name given to the group which is going to sit together to make the decision.
So all stakeholders should be part of the Shura.
This is a mistake which many times people make.
And it's a very fundamental mistake.
And that mistake is an absolutely killer for the decision.
Because if a stakeholder, if a key stakeholder is missing, then that decision to get it implemented will be practically impossible.
So to take them all into confidence.
To have them all part of the decision making group, part of the Shura is absolutely critical.
The reason why some people get missed out, one of the major reasons is because of the fear of disagreement.
So you would have somebody, one member of the family or group or whatever it is, who is contrary, who is argumentative and all that.
And people like to keep it.
And people like to keep it.
And people like to keep it.
And people like to keep it.
And people like to keep it.
And people like to keep it.
So they exclude them either consciously or unconsciously.
And this person gets left out.
And then obviously there is hell to pay because nothing will happen.
Nothing will move.
That person will make sure that everything gets sabotaged.
So it is very important to make sure that all key stakeholders are part of the decision making group, part of the Shura.
No matter whether you like them, you don't like them, they are agreeable, disagreeable, whatnot, doesn't matter.
make sure they are part of the decision making group.
Second thing is that when the meeting starts, people who are in that group, they must go
there with a certain mindset.
And that's why I said begin by throwing your ego into the garbage bin outside the room.
So when you go inside there, go with the intention of keeping the primacy of the reason why you
are coming together.
So why are you coming together?
I'm going to be coming together in order to solve this problem.
And we are coming together in order to come to a decision about this issue.
You're not getting there to prove who's right or who's wrong.
You're not going in there to win an argument.
You're not going in there to show who is smart and who is not smart and who is, you know,
whatever, right?
It's not a personal competition.
It's not a boxing ring.
You're going in there collectively to solve a problem.
So it is not me versus you.
It is me and me and me and me and me versus the problem, versus the decision.
That's a very important mindset.
And these things don't happen automatically.
You have to be conscious about it and you have to think about it carefully and consciously
take that decision.
I'm going in here with one goal and which is to arrive at a solution.
Okay.
I'm not going in there to prove that I was always right, that I should be right.
I should be, I should be obeyed.
My idea should be taken.
The other guy is wrong.
None of that.
Only goal is how do you solve this problem?
Everyone together.
It is not me versus you.
It is all of us versus the problem.
So that's the mindset you need to go in there with.
Then it is important in the Sura system to select what is called a Faisal.
Okay.
So, let's go.
Okay.
There is one thing that we need to do.
We need to decide what to do.
We need to decide which is the best option, which is the best way to do it.
We need to choose a leader for the group.
If there is no leader, then there is chaos.
The job of the leader is to lead that discussion and finally to announce the decision to which
the leader has come.
So appoint a leader.
Obviously appoint the person who is most knowledgeable, the person who is ... One way of appointing
is appoint the leader, appoint as the leader, the one who has the maximum stake in the business,
maximum stake in the decision.
By stake, I don't necessarily mean shareholding.
I mean the person who will be most affected by the decision which is being taken.
Appoint that person as the leader because at the end of the day, that person is the
one who is going to benefit or be hurt either way.
So, therefore, appoint them.
That's one possibility.
Other possibility, of course, is the biggest shareholder, the oldest person, the most knowledgeable
person, head of the family, whatever you want to call it.
So, there has to be a leader who is the leader of the meeting and this person will lead the
discussion.
The goal of the leader, again, must be very clear.
The goal of the leader is not to get his point of view accepted.
The goal of the leader.
The goal of the leader is to arrive at the best possible decision concerning the issue.
So, it's very important because many times leaders use the Shura to whitewash their own
decisions which they have already come to.
Now, that is an excellent way of destroying your own credibility because people see through
that in one second and then next time you call them, they either won't come or even
they come.
There's no commitment.
They say, what?
Someone.
You're wasting time.
This guy already has something he wants to do and he wants to use this meeting as a way
of whitewashing that.
So, you know, forget it.
So, that would be very stupid.
So, never do that.
Don't fall into that trap.
Be open.
Be open to change.
Be open to changing your mind.
Be sincere about this and play your role as a leader.
Now, the leader's job is to seek the opinion of the people in the majlis.
We call this a majlis.
The group.
He can do it in two ways.
One way is he can obviously go, you know, do a round robin and ask everyone.
The other way is he need not ask everyone.
In some cases, he may not be able to ask everyone because there are too many people and there's
not enough time.
So, he must, he can ask selected people.
Now, there again, all of these things are, you know, potential problems.
But if they're handled well, there's no problem.
Now, who are the, who would you select?
One, you would select people who are, again, key stakeholders.
The biggest pain areas.
The people who are most likely to be affected by the decision, most likely to have a, you
know, who have a biggest stake in it.
So, pick those people as their opinion.
The, another important thing is.
Make sure, as a leader, I'm speaking now to the leader.
Make sure that you ask the opinion of people who you suspect will disagree.
That's very important.
Do not ask only the opinion of people who are within courts, your people, who are agreed,
who will agree.
Ask specifically people who will not agree or who you fear will not agree.
That's very important to make sure you do that.
Okay.
Okay.
Okay.
Otherwise, you leave that door open and then those people will disagree and they will destroy
your decision.
So, make sure you ask people who you know are likely to have a disagreement.
So, ask those people.
And then at the end of all that consultation, whether it's a round-robin, everyone's opinion
or this, the leader must then take a decision, a clear decision.
It can be done right there at the time.
Or if the leader wants some time to think about it, he can ask for this time.
It takes his time.
Make sure that you take notes.
This is very, very, very critical.
Make sure you take notes.
Nobody has got, no matter what you think about your memory, it's never good enough to cater
for the amount of data that you will get.
So, therefore, make sure you take notes.
And then you can convey your decision.
Make sure, again, that the decision is something which is good for everyone.
Now, the people who are giving the opinion, the members of the showroom.
First rule is, as I said, leave your ego outside.
Go in there with the interest of the group at heart, with the interest of the decision
you are taking.
Going in there for that reason, not for any other reason.
So, therefore, go with that idea.
That's because of me.
We must have the best possible decision.
When you are giving an opinion, give an opinion which is best for everyone, even if it is
inconvenient for you.
So, for example, if somebody says, what time should we begin work?
Now, you might be an early morning person.
So, don't say six o'clock because it will be inconvenient for other people.
You might be the opposite.
You might be somebody who doesn't like to get out early.
So, don't say 10 o'clock.
Because other people are able to come out earlier and they might be able to do that.
So, see what is best for the group, what is best for the decision, what is best for the
goal that you are trying to achieve.
And even if it is something that is inconvenient for you, it doesn't matter.
Your opinion must be in favor of that.
So, when you are giving an opinion, give it altruistically from that perspective.
Second thing is that when you are writing a book, you must be able to give it in favor of that.
So, if you are speaking, if somebody disagrees with you, or if you want to disagree with somebody,
begin with acknowledging those people, acknowledging the others.
Begin with acknowledging the person who is disagreeing.
Remembering that disagreement is a sign of engagement.
Disagreement is a sign of commitment.
Only a person who is committed to the outcome, only a person who is interested in arriving
at a good decision.
Another person who is not interested in arriving at a good decision.
This is what we call disagreement.
And the same goes for the person who disagrees with you.
Some people take their time and trouble to disagree.
Others don't care.
They simply don't care.
It's okay.
You do whatever you want.
It makes no difference to me.
Those people are no good to you.
You want people who are committed.
You want people who will go out of their way to make things happen.
So, with that,
