Question: Sometimes, a strong group begins to block a person who is a leader and an organizer as it tries to make him equal to everyone else. What should we do in such a case?

Answer: In the past, people used to say: “If the head stands out, it should be taken off.”

A group cannot and should not allow someone’s head to be above the others. Everyone is equal, in everything! The group is all about commonality, and there should be no doubts here.

If you see that there is a person with special qualities in your group—a person who has special skills such as working under pressure, patience, desire, and so forth—give him something to do outside the group. Test him through that, and then take him out of the group. Let him engage in something external that is detached from the group so that there would be no gossip or trouble in the group. However, as long as a person is in the group, he must not stand out. It is also a kind of a test to see if he has the will power to constantly restrain himself so that the group will be homogeneous.

Speak to him separately: “Although you stand out, look and learn from the others. This is your mission. You have to behave like the others and under no circumstances be above them. This is the only way you can express yourself. This is not the place to spill your heart out.” Thus, he will train himself.

Question: When should he be taken out of the group if he cannot be equal to everyone, but still tries to be?

Answer: The group cannot tolerate any such attempts. If he can control himself, leave him in the group, but let him develop his organizational skills. However, if he has no organizational skills but just likes to make noise, then he gradually will get used to not standing out in the group. There are people who cannot accept this and who think, like children: “How can I sit together with others?” Such people should be taken out of the group.
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From a Talk on Integral Education 4/4/13 

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