“It makes one feel lonely on top,” says Infosys CEO Narayana Murthy on the subject of leadership.

Murthy, who recently published a book titled “I Did What I Had to Do,” told an audience that leadership is not just about getting ahead; it’s also about doing the right thing and inspiring faith in the tens of thousands who turn to you for direction.

Infosys CEO Narayana Murthy

N R Narayana Murthy, co-founder of Infosys, stated on Sunday that he has experienced the isolation that comes with leadership. Murthy, speaking at a book launch for Anjana Dutt’s biography of entrepreneur Madan Mohanka titled “I Did What I Had to Do,” told the audience that leadership is also about doing the right thing and inspiring faith in one’s ability to lead hundreds of thousands of people.

“They believe that leaders rarely see anyone else at the top. When Madan (Mohanka) told me yesterday that being a leader is incredibly isolating, I recognised something in myself and in Mehul (Mohanka’s son) since I’ve been there “His words.

Madan Mohanka is the current Chairman and Executive Director of Tega Industries Limited, which he created in 1976. Mehul, his son, now runs the business as Managing Director and Group CEO.

“The appropriate action is another hallmark of leadership. It’s about inspiring hope in the hearts and minds of tens of thousands of people who look to you for direction but are paralysed by fears about the future (of their children, their education, their parents’ health, their finances, etc.) “Says Murthy.

Murthy argued that leaders have a need to instill trust in their followers.

Mohanka, the industrialist, “fell into the lowest depths of despair and reached the highest mountains of delight,” as Murthy put it in his biography.

In the end, he remarked, the book is about a man doing what he had to do. In addition, “I think it is a really suitable moniker since usually people outside the arena, they just do not understand why when you take a specific decision,” he said.

Murthy explained that the book details how one man inspired a large group of people by promising them a rainbow and picturesque mountains if they worked hard enough, and then encouraging them to take the first steps towards achieving their goal.

“As I climb higher and higher, I find it increasingly difficult to catch my breath, even though I know the way is challenging and the journey is not easy. But, that is the path to success. Thus, I am relieved to report that this book accomplishes all of those goals and more “His words.

//