15 OLQs (Officer Like Qualities) every Defence aspirant should learn from Abhinandan Varthaman
Needless to say, it is mandatory for every defence aspirant to possess some unique traits/skills both mentally and physically. These skills should cover all the OLQs (Officer Like Qualities) and should be in every single person irrespective of whether he/she is preparing for the SSB or not. This article focuses on discussing these 15 OLQs (Officer Like Qualities) that every Defence aspirant should learn from Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
Developing 15 OLQs | Abhinandan Varthaman
Table of Contents
Indian Air Force (IAF) Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman spent two-days in the captivity of Pakistan and returned to a hero’s welcome in India. From a defence perspective, it is important to know how and where does our IAF Wing Commander has shown these qualities and what can we learn from this hero officer of the Indian Armed Forces.
Below mentioned are the 15 OLQs (Officer Like Qualities) which should be developed in every defence aspirant when appearing for the SSB Interview Process.
- Effective Intelligence.
- Reasoning Ability
- Organizing Ability
- Power of Expression
- Social Adaptability
- Cooperation
- Sense of Responsibility
- Liveliness
- Initiative
- Self – Confidence
- Speed Decision Ability
- Group Influencing Ability
- Courage
- Stamina
- Determination
Effective Intelligence
- Finding a practical solution by yourself in any given situation and by tackling an unexpected problem smartly and quickly defines an effective intelligence of a person.
- Even by using the simple common sense during day to day problems, this OLQ can become a habit which can give the best possible result in complex problems.
- Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman smartly tackled every situation raised by Pakistani army soldiers. His calm and confident behavioral traits showed the importance of having an effective intelligence.
Reasoning Ability
- To convince a person with both facts and figures after listening carefully and to understand the pros and cons of a given situation defines this ability.
- It is important that defence aspirant must be able to find a smart reason for everything. Hence, this is an important OLQ.
- According to the video shared by the Pak Army, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman had an exceptional reasoning ability. His way of saying words without any tension showed confidence which practically helped in making his reasons tough.
Organizing Ability
- This ability automatically develops when the effective intelligence becomes strong.
- Organizing small things can sometimes be huge tasks, officers at SSB Interviews often look for this ability during the GTO tasks. Smartly prioritizing the work with quick decisions defines this ability.
- After Abhinandan Varthaman’s MiG 21 Bison crashed in Pakistan, the wing commander jumped into a small pond and hurriedly tried to destroy some documents and maps he was carrying, by drowning them in water and even attempted to swallow them. This showed how the wing commander maintained a level head and admirable composure from the very start of this ordeal.
Power of Expression
- Confidently speaking without lacking any sign of composure defines this ability. Aspirants sometimes misunderstand this OLQ which doesn’t mean that one has to speak too loudly to convey their points.
- This OLQ requires strong communication skills. Speaking fluent English along with good pronunciation can maximize the chances.
- Having surrounded by the villagers of Horran in Pakistan administered Kashmir approximately 7 km from the Line of Control, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman asked the youths whether he was in India or Pakistan, to which one of them answered, “India”. If this displayed smart thinking by the inhabitants who clearly wanted to deceive the Indian pilot into convincing he was home and safe but Abhinandan appears to have been dubious. He replied with “shouted some slogans” presumably ‘Hindustan Zindabad’ – and told the youths that his “back was broken” and that he needed water. Enraged by his slogan, a local from the group yelled “Pakistan Zindabad”, immediately alarming Abhinandan to the fact that he was on the wrong side of the border. This couldn’t have happened if he wasn’t trained to use his power of expression at the right time.
Social Adaptability
- Confidently meeting and speaking with people without showing any stress or shyness via initiating the conversations with ease defines this OLQ.
- Officers present at SSB focuses on inspecting this OLQ from the very first day of the SSB Interview process as most of the aspirants’ personality and nature can be seen when interacting with other unknown aspirants.
- Considering the whole timeline of events, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman could have easily kept silent so that no information with the Pak Officials could have been shared. Instead, he spoke with the Pak Militants and even drank tea with them which helped to strengthen the relations between the two countries at such tension filled environment.
Co-operation
- It is a well known fact that Cooperation is a derivative of Effective Intelligence.
- Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman without a doubt co-operated with the Pak Officials. This OLQ of his helped him to create an environment of friendliness around an enemy which is crucial to establish, hence this OLQ is an important part of recruitment in the SSB process.
Sense of Responsibility
- To possess greater credibility and maturity, officer in the Indian Armed Forces must show this OLQ at any time. To build trust over anyone and to accept responsibility at any cost defines this OLQ.
- It is important to note that sense of responsibility is not determined by one’s age. Aspirants have to look at every situation like they are already an officer.
- Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman knew what he was dealing with once he got to know where he had crashed. His quick self-thinking of dealing with every situation whether it’s him not fighting back after getting mauled by the villagers or by the Pakistani Militants showed his sense of responsibility towards his nation.
Liveliness
- An active officer cannot be dull or monotonous instead he/she should be active and cheerful. This OLQ is important as no one likes an officer who is somewhat lazy and can never finish an activity on time.
- Be chivalrous, graceful and practice your etiquettes. Even at home. Know how to treat people like an officer – not overtly friendly neither rude
- Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman showed immense liveliness on ground. His active mind and never die attitude as we all know resulted him in getting out of Pakistan safe and sound.
Initiative
- As much as the confidence trait is important in SSB, talking leadership and initiating activities in a group of people defines this psychological quality. Aspirants should never hesitate to show their leadership quality in the GTO ground.
- Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, who was brought to Delhi after Pakistan released him on Friday, has apprised defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Air Chief Marshal B.S. Dhanoa about the mental harassment he was subjected to during his nearly 60-hour captivity in Pakistan and this mental harassment could have turned into torture if he hasn’t showed his leadership abilities there.
- Officers present at the SSB, looks for those aspirants who is ever ready to take an initiative and try to fulfill that assignment. This means, you have to be very competent in everything you do. A few steps ahead of your men. This means you have to foresee and expect things and plan for it and that’s exactly what Abhinandan
Self Confidence
- The interrogation video of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman depicted that he is not willing to reveal anything. He is trained to face these situations and used his self-confidence to say a from NO when the time’s right. What’s commendable is the fact that he politely declined the request for additional information from hostile forces. It shows how crucial self-confidence is.
- Self-confidence is most essential for success. Believe in yourself, your skills. Believe that nothing can ever stop you from achieving your goal.
Speed Decision Ability
- There is a difference between thinking quickly and taking decisions quickly. A leadership quality has to be embedded in to take decisions.
- During his time in the Indian Air Force, Abhinandan Varthaman was trained not break amidst chaos. The ability to remain calm in a difficult situation is a skill that can only be mastered over time. It teaches us that when we face situations that are beyond our control, we have to learn to remain calm because that is the only way we’ll act rationally, exactly like Abhinandan did when he was in captivity.
- Try to think of the demerits and merits before doing anything. Then you will make a perfect decision.
Group Influencing Ability
- A group influencer should be able to shut down, control and manipulate all basic human instincts towards one goal which is towards the welfare of your nation. This is the price of being a warrior.
- Only a person with an exceptional personality can do this. Hence, this OLQ is hard to achieve.
- We have previously seen that our Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman easily influenced the Pak Militants into not giving any information that wanted. No matter how much they pressured him but he didn’t break, instead he influenced them into making him a very respectable person which should not be meddled with.
Courage
- This OLQ has to be nurtured over years as it is the most instinctive quality of an individual with an inbred understanding of determination and confidence.
- Courage is the most critical of all the ethics because without courage, you can’t develop any other OLQs.
- Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman has overwhelmed the whole nation with his fortitude and courage in the face of enemy captivity. Pakistani media proclaimed how in the face of acute crisis, our fighter pilot didn’t frenzied or lost his psyche.
Stamina
- The SSB grants certain allowances regarding this OLQ. Aspirants need to find the cause of not having enough stamina or how they can maintain such stamina to complete both physical and mental work without having stress.
- After hearing the ‘Long Live Pakistan!’ slogan, Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman fled the crash place by which the villagers began pelting stones at him. The Pakistani Villagers chased him off and even shot him in the leg. Abhinandan then fell into a stream where Pakistani Army came to his rescue. If he hadn’t ran, he could have died right there and any all of this could have never happened.
Determination
- The mental strength to bear all the hardships and to complete the given tasks is an important part of a candidate’s reputation. Courage means you keep on moving even if you are scared and you have the ability to overcome the problem even in the presence of fear. Determination on the other hand means you have decided to achieve something with boldness even if it is difficult.
- The return of Abhinandan was an exceptional and rare feat achieved by the Indian Army. The heroic return couldn’t have completed if our Pilot have panicked, would have shot himself or disrespected any Pak Militant. It is important to note that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman made his mind from the moment he knew that he crashed on the wrong side of the border. He was determined to get back safely to his home country irrespective of the situations and circumstances he was in.
We hope that this blog should’ve provided you with all the required details about 15 OLQs (Officer Like Qualities) every Defence aspirant should learn from Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
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