Being an entrepreneur or a team leader is undoubtedly a huge challenge. Leading a large group of people toward a goal is difficult, and if leading

a team is hard in good times, it’s even harder in times of adversity.

Every leader and entrepreneur faces crises along the way, but perhaps the most difficult are those they face on a personal level; these can be greater than those they encounter on a

professional level. Personal attacks can become daggers disguised as criticism, striking at the leader within you andEntrepreneurbut they can also alert you to more attacks to come.

Although personal criticism is never entirely welcome, it can sometimes be useful: it reveals your critics’ intentions and what they may have in store for the future, and it also helps you

demonstrate your ability to handle the circumstances around you during a crisis.

Remember that hostility and conflict are inevitable; no one is surrounded only by friends—there will always be enemies and rivals. Just as you choose your friends

carefully, you should choose your enemies carefully. Don’t make enemies who are of no value to you and will drag you down while you’re striving to reach the top.

When Chris Hani, the leader of South Africa’s Communist Party, was assassinated, widespread protests erupted across the country against the de Klerk government. Nelson Mandela had, at that point,

been released from prison after spending 27 years there for resisting the government. But while the crowds wanted revenge, he called for peace. So, rather than being in

Describing those protests, he found that making the government an enemy at such an advanced age would serve neither his interests nor his goals. So he made it

a potential partner during that period, despite refusing—while in prison—to comply with that government’s conditions.

As a leader, you need to know whom to count among your enemies and whom to tolerate or ignore without forgetting what they did. As one wise person says: “A fool neither forgives

nor forgets; a naive person forgives and forgets; but a wise person neither forgives nor forgets.”

You must surely experience feelings of forgiveness and revenge, just as you experience love and hate. If you have never found yourself in a situation where you wanted revenge, then one of two things is true: either you’re

lying to yourself, or you have nothing but the will to surrender and put on a heroic appearance by offering forgiveness under duress.

Revenge here does not mean physical harm, but emotional revenge through reason. When you feel the urge to take revenge, don’t rush to settle the score

just to satisfy your anger. Instead, choose the right time and the right tools when responding to anything that has embarrassed you.

When journalists piled questions on the late minister Ghazi Al Gosaibi about why he had lost to his Japanese rival in the race for the UN secretary-generalship, his response was: “When

you’re in a battle and bullets are flying, it’s hard to think logically. As the proverb says: ‘Wait until the shooting dies down.’”

In his book *The 48 Laws of Power*, Robert Greene writes: “If you leave a fire burning, no matter how small, it will eventually flare up again.” That is why

Robert set out Law 15: “Crush your enemy totally.” He says: “Many people waste effort and the success of their victory by stopping short of carrying on

An attack gives the enemy a chance to recover and seek revenge.

As a leader and entrepreneur, you don’t necessarily need to rush into a response. It may take a long time, and instead of seeking revenge, you may be able to turn that enemy into an ally,

as Mandela did. But first, make sure you know exactly where to strike your opponent. And when you start crushing them, make sure you finish the job. When you repay a debt, you should

“repay it twofold.”

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Dr. Abdullah bin Ibrahim Al-Sultan
PhD in Leadership – Leadership Consultant and Coach