Leadership lessons from China

On 8 August, China further stamped its leadership in the international theatre with an incredibly impressive demonstration of its art, history & culture on the one hand and its ability to use cutting edge technology, first class infrastructure and superior execution on the other! I am talking about the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics.
A billion people worldwide sat mesmerized by the Greatest Show on Earth! What followed in the days after was finely honed skill, passion & an absolute desire to Win – the result, a record gold medal haul by a country that won its first gold medal in 1984.
Through all of this what shines through is the leadership, national growth & people development cult that flows through the country underlined by the passion & determination to WIN. I am quite certain that its not just about people talent, intensive planning, strategy or the 40 Billion dollars that went down to host the show! Its deeper than that - it is the unified determination, discipline, deligence, belief, collaboration and pride of over a billion people in a vastly spread & diversified land.
Every other nation, society or organization that strives for similar attainments need to mirror the spirit of the Chinese people. Passionately striving & preparing for leadership in everything that mattered - each performance category, in getting their city ready to host the world, in making the sacrifices to ensure that the air was clean despite the criticism that was waged upon them, in displaying the pride of the people regarding their country and culture and in demonstrating the spirit of the games by supporting every participant and providing a flavor to the games that was very, very unique. Very impressive ... Congratulations China!