BENGALURU: Game of Thrones (GoT) has been one of those few series that got me genuinely hooked not just in terms of the drama and thrill, but from a strategy, politics and human behavioral point of view. One of the lines that I have used in my own company is ‘Winter is Coming’ to signal the incoming harsh times for the company and to get them prepped up.
Everybody can relate to the line and everyone has a visual reference to what happens when the winter does arrive. On the same note; the line from the Starks - ‘When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives’ - kept me tied to the team and engaged during difficult times and inspired me to have deep faith in the pack I followed or led.‘Most men would deny a hard truth than face it’ - this line has worked like an internal compass for me whenever I walk into a meeting.
– AM Sameer, CEO, founder, Bonito Designs
Surround yourself with the best people for you - the show relates the importance of having a good team and making the best use of each person’s skills, experience, and expertise.
A good leader will delegate tasks objectively, listen to trusted advice, and make decisions keeping the larger picture in mind. Whether you’re running a kingdom or a company, at the end of the day the buck stops with you, so it is best to make an informed decision.
The attention to detail in the show is also absolutely fantastic. The costumes and the set designs are so reflective of the characters – they truly sell the story and create an atmosphere that subtly wows a viewer. We design and produce textiles, and put a lot of painstaking thought into every detail of our products - from the patterns and the textures to the durability and versatility – so it was great to see the fabric being used in such an expressive fashion.
- Akshay Jaipuria, partner,VAYA Home
I take inspiration from one of the characters (Daenerys Targaryen) to give my best, work hard and put my efforts and passion towards achieving my personal as well as professional goals. One of theother important lessons that I have learnt from the series is that one should look at allying and collaborating with others for the greater good. No matter the differences, the tech employability problem in India is one of the issues many competitors and firms find common ground with us.
Last but not the least, one must be patient in order to execute their tasks and see the fruits of their work. Just like in the series, times might look grim and one might even believe that they will lose the race but a constant effort to fight back will definitely show its rewards in the near future.
— Narayan Mahadevan,co-founder of BridgeLabz
One thing the GoT team has always done really well is building a strong brand and using strategic tactics to activate the hype engine. We seek inspiration from GoT campaigns when working on our own campaign ideas by deriving learnings from them to understand psychological triggers of the audience to get virality. Another marketing thing to learn from them is the repurposing of content. All startup founders should follow their marketing efforts over the years and learn how to build a strong hype engine. GoT teaches you to turn your apparent enemies intoallies and win the great war.
- Rahul Singh, co-founder and CEO, Ithaka
To an outsider, Game of Thrones might look like a show about dragons, sorcery and dead people but the truest fans of the show find the magic to be a small part of the narrative. The strategy, politics, human relationships, and lessons on camaraderie and leadership transcend the fantasy. Having been an avid fan of the books, I have always been a huge admirer of numerous characters and the journey they have embarked upon.But the biggest lesson I have learned is that whenever you face a challenge – your own equivalent of white walkers – you must accept it and face it. There will be mistakes. Fear might overwhelm you. But the best thing to do is to accept that you are not perfect and keep going forward.
‘Not today’ is what you need to say to any adversity you face. And yes – always listen to your advisors! It is very important to have the Tyrions, the Jorah Mormonts, the Davos Seaworths alongside you. They are the real heroes.
- Pratul Gupta,co-founder, Grexter