Tag: human

Christmas and leadership

Using the power and energy of the human voice, we have gathered to share stories from times immemorial. We have passed on creation tales and tragic stories, repeated family history. Storytelling has been imbued with ritual and occasion. Members of tribes and various collectives have gathered around the fire to hear how their lives were interwoven with that of others.

Storytelling is also the art of repeating over and over because you believe that each time you hear it, you come to the story as a different person, and view the plot and characters in a new light. Hearing that story is a way to gauge where you have been and where you are now on our path of personal growth. It is also part of raising younger generations, so that they can pass it on to forthcoming generations.

Yet I noted how most formal traditions of storytelling are lost. It doesn’t mean that I have to be without. I can begin new practices, learn to listen to another, to speak honouring his or her unique stories and uniqueness, witnessing the different journeys of those around me without imposing mine. 

By building new practices of storytelling we learn to lead in a new way. We give ourselves and the ones we love an opportunity to draw closer in our shared human experiences. Long live the stories around Christmas and all traditions!

Leadership and humility

As a single mom, I have long led my life independently. I felt reassured to have full control over my decisions, and to decide for myself which way to go. It took me a long time to understand that I was under the illusion that I was in charge and could handle the responsibilities towards my son that I felt squarely on my shoulders.

I discovered that it takes a village to raise a child. We probably each come to realize in our lives that behind each one of us stands at least one person. In the past, we often looked to our spouse to be that person. Some of us had the helpful experience of realizing that this is not the exclusive role of spouses, and that we are meant to have many supporters to allow ourselves to do the things we want to do, to realize our dreams, to become ourselves fully.

Have you come to appreciate how life is perfectly orchestrated to bring the right people around you to get to where you want to go? Have you become aware of how you are yourself being placed on someone else’s path to support that person? As you take time to acknowledge everyone that has supported you on your path, and how many times you were there for someone else, you will gain an understanding and genuine appreciation for the amazing human support system that life is and, thereby, develop the much-needed humility that today’s leadership in a chaotic world demands.

The new multi dimensional human

I remember the days when in University, studying international relations, we had the luxury to pick a topic on which we could read all there was written on the issue and add something original that had not been considered before.  I have often reflected over the past years how this would be impossible today, given the sheer amount of written publications, the constant influx of scientific studies, and the relentless speed at which new books come out, confounding our well-researched opinion. I have come to dismiss or even ignore new information to simply find the time and space to stabilize my point of view on a particular issue. Yet, I am wondering whether this is the best way forward in our new digital age.

We have learned to process information in a certain way, categorizing, labeling, and developing an argument with enough rigor to demonstrate the validity of our theses. We have come to a reality, which is so complex, volatile, and uncertain that we can strive to be clear in explaining our thought process, but we have long lost the ability to establish the validity of our thought process with any kind of certainty.

You may have read contradictory studies regarding various foods, wondering whether tomatoes are good or bad for you. You can accumulate the data, categorize and label the various theories, but ultimately, you will have to give up establishing the facts with any kind of certainty. You will likely have to decide on the answer depending on the individual and reassess every so often. The key is perhaps to realize that you are not going to finally get to some stable place of having it all figured out. This is humbling.

Finding our way intuitively in the face of massive data, staying open to new information, integrating what works for each and every one of us, stabilizing our worldview at any given point in time, to ultimately ride the next incoming wave of information, intuition, and re-stabilize until the next shift… This full spectrum thinking process may just be the best way forward to develop the multi-dimensional human that we will need to become in the face of massive uncertainty. Let us see this as an opportunity to play, surf on the waves, and enjoy the ride!

Leadership and listening in to our surroundings

I recently received a new lesson in leadership from nature around me. I live in a city, and much of the world I experience daily is dominated and controlled by human beings, whether we spend our time in buildings, cars, or homes. We are “protected” by structures which give us the illusion of control. Rather than listening in to the wind, the rain, we feel more at ease when we can assert our wills and manipulate our environment. I had the good fortune to live in Canada, albeit in the city for many years. I will always be grateful for that time, which helped me connect with nature when entering the forest or sitting on the edge of a lake, listening into another realm, which is simply asking that we drop our baggage, as human beings, and surrender to a different sense of order and meaning.

When we come from urban centers into nature, we may be tempted to bring our cell phone. We may talk loudly to a friend that comes along. We may go by quickly, as we are used to busy city tempo. We can be totally oblivious to our surroundings. Yet, if we tune in to our environment, we will quickly be taken over by a different reality. We will hear birds and other noises like the wind through the leaves of a tree. We will naturally surrender to the presence of nature into a receptive state of openness and listening.

Should you allow yourself to be captivated and calmed by the energy of nature around you, you will notice that you are not leading your life so much as being led by the energy around you. You will discover that this leadership moving through you, originates from outside of you, and feels so much more connected to others and the planet. It is a different type of leadership that needs to be experienced rather than being taught in seminars. It honors our surroundings and our presence in a way that humbles human nature and moves us in a different direction than our own will, away from crumbling structures into a different sense of security.