When did the violent words become the leadership languages? Crush the market, rat race, cut-throat competition.

We casually say things like crush the market, rat race, cut-throat competition, killing it, beating the competition, dominating the space, outperforming at any cost, winning the war, capturing territory, and many more. Over time, these phrases stop sounding extreme and start feeling normal. And before we know it, leadership begins to look like survival than performance.

But leadership doesn’t have to feel like a battlefield. The alternative is not being passive or less ambitious. It’s choosing a different lens. One where growth, performance, and success don’t require destruction. I am rereading Business Sutra by Devdutt Pattanaik and it offers a powerful way to see this shift.

Many organizations still operate from Ranabhoomi thinking – Compete, Conquer and Eliminate. Rangabhoomi (the stage) frames leadership as performance, contribution and expression. A space where you don’t kill to win, you show up to perform. Where success comes from clarity, capability, and presence, not fear.

When leaders move from Ranabhoomi to Rangabhoomi, competition doesn’t disappear, but it does not look violent and the result of which leaders feel more purposeful.

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