THE LEADER (9): Reform and Lead for Posterity

Matthew Ujah-Peter

When I was a boy growing up I listened to good and well-meaning people talking about leaving one’s foot prints on the sands of time. But as thought-provoking as that idea may sound, it often left question marks in my head. The amusing question that popped in my head in those days and even now when I hear such statements (and people use it profusely today than ever) is, ''don't sands get washed away by rains and winds?'' In my own estimate, sands aren’t always good materials to build lasting investments on, especially when it has something to do with posterity. So I preferred saying that I'd like to carve my name on the rocks of times. That sounded more concrete to me. But that was then.

The point is not about carving one’s name on stones or leaving ones footsteps on the sands of times. Those are by-products. Those aren’t what you seek. Those aren’t even the end-results. The quest to make life comfortable for oneself and family is a honourable one but also an easy route to becoming self-centred and missing the path that leads to creating a lasting legacy beyond the boundaries of private achievements.

When Henry Ford ventured into mass production of the T-Model Ford cars he wasn't about it for just himself, otherwise the face of the automobile industry would have been a little different today. His aim for mass production of cheap affordable cars was to make sure that everyone can afford cars. He put a program in place for his staffs to own their own cars at the time when owning a car was the exclusive privilege of the few wealthy upper class citizens in his country. By making it easy for the ordinary man to own a car, he created the catalyst for infrastructural development such as roads, fuel stations, more mechanic workshops and service stations, etc. The commercial and economic life of his city and nation began to improve on the account of those amenities. With improved infrastructures social amenities improved, villages developed into towns, and towns into cities.

The men who first thought of mass-producing shoes and clothing; those who thought of mass housing, those who first thought of electricity in every home; those who first came up with the idea of connecting telephone to every home, gas to every home, television and radio for every home and so on - whether their names are known and remembered or not - are the ones who helped in making life more easier to live today. These are people who thought of the good of others.

If our desires and thoughts are focused on helping to make life better for others, Providence would give us life-saving ideas. But what we do from ancient generation to date is to use what we have to dominate, exploit and oppress others. This is why despite our huge reserves of natural resources; Africa is still impoverished and struggling. Yet a country whose population is no more than one of the smallest African countries with little or no natural resources could come into our midst and take our men and women slaves to their country and colonize the rest of us for years. African is rich in resources and culture; strong in body, numerous in numbers but weak against a nation as small in population as the Great Britain. The British didn’t colonize us because they’re more in number; it was because we didn’t value our fellow men's lives. And do we today?

How were they able to buy slaves from Africa? You could argue that that was the past and that we should put the past behind us. So I used to think. But as I observed our leadership system and the general condition of the continent with all the educational institutions, educationists and educated people, I fear we have not learned much. Let’s assume that there’s no law against slavery today in the west, do you think our people and our leaders would stop slave trade with the way things are today? You could argue that the ones that bought slaves were guilty. Granted! But what value did we place on ourselves to tell outsiders that we weren’t for sale?

Africans weren’t the only people colonized by the British. America was, too. So were India and other nations. But I never read or heard these sold their own kinds to the British as slaves as we did. Prior to their coming we were killing our twins, calling them bad omens. We were sacrificing our fellow men to deities. We were and are still calling some people outcasts. Some people pride themselves in the culture of burying certain dead in the evil forest. Thus we gave the West the impression that we are inferior humans by the inhuman ways we treated ourselves

They were the ones who stopped slave-trade on their own, not us. We did not stop selling, they stopped buying. They made a law against it in their own land. Mary Slessor went on a crusade and successfully stopped the killing of twins. Missionary introduced schools and hospitals. And all we could say to that is that they brought foreign religion and supplanted our culture and religion. Some people tenaciously held on to the old degrading ways. Yet we haven’t given ourselves any better systems. The Chinese gave themselves an educational system that experts says helped the Chinese learn mathematics better and faster than even the western system. The Indians too, have gone ahead to fashion out better systems for themselves. We have not given ourselves anything better than the west gave us. Not even the way we govern ourselves.

Why is it so with them and not so with us? I think it’s the eye they have for values. Their value system gave them their economic systems. The price they place on human being is the result of the worth they believe humans have. When you value human being you will want to do the best for them. So, it is not a question of whether you are remembered. No. It’s about solving human problems with the investment of your abilities, gifts and skills on the bases of what you think people are worth. When you are dead you will still live. When you are gone you will still be here. It’s not about fame or name. It’s about your good work born out of a desire to meet humanity's need. This is how great leaders outlived themselves: They carved their names on the hearts of men.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (8): Leading in an Era of Mental Giants

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

From the time men began to learn to keep records through the use of wet clay when symbols where used to represent information on wet clay in about 1,900 BC ancient Mesopotamia to about 1,200 BC ancient Egypt, when images were carved or drawn on walls and on papyrus for the purpose of record keeping, to this modern time, mind boggling details of inventions, discoveries and inspirations are already well captured in books and other modern systems. And today, we live in a world where information and knowledge rule all aspects of life. To be a voice in any terrain in life, one must have expertise. As a wise man once put it, ‘’it takes your head to be ahead.’’ A leader therefore, is the man who searches for information and knowledge as one who searches for precious merchandise.

It's  a fact that individuals and  nations that have the most information and knowledge in this world and who further take the pain to have them recorded had always dominated and ruled the ones with less information and knowledge, hence the saying, ‘’information is the commodity of kings’’. Again, it's said that ‘’ ...people perish due to lack of knowledge’’. In our present world academic knowledge alone, as important as it is, is no longer enough. This is evidenced by school drop-outs that had gone ahead to become giants in their chosen fields. Continuous self- development through incessant reading holds a major key in helping to challenge and agitate the human minds to develop and rise beyond its status quo.

We are living in the information age and the volume of information coming at us on a minute- by-minute bases is enormous. The Internet, the print media and other electronic media attest to the fact that it is indeed the days of increased knowledge. Information is flying at such high speeds as if the world is in a hurry to get somewhere, and indeed it is. These information ranges from scientific to spiritual; political to financial and from entertainment to business. Everyone can and should benefit from these torrents of information flow. They are flowing past and around us constantly and will only settle in minds that are prepared for them, even as many of them are captured in books.

It's not very surprising then that the most powerful people in our world today are ‘’book people’’ – they’. Not only are they ardent book readers, they also write books and set up platforms to encourage reading. Dr.Myles Munroe of blessed memory once said that books are people and not just papers. ''When you rob minds with great books you're robbing minds with great people", he said.

To think qualitatively you need good sources of thought stimulants. Books are good thought stimulants. The most brilliant men in history and in our days are men of great thoughts. A man's contribution to life is a sum total of his knowledge and thoughts. A marriage between deep good thought and good information will always give birth to quality ideas and innovations. What are the things that provoke your thoughts? Just as it is said in the good book, ''...iron sharpeneth iron''. When you gain access into great minds you will get seeds planted into your own thoughts through their writings. This is the secret that makes great minds. Isaac Newton once said that to see further he needed to stand on the shoulders of giants. Standing on the shoulders of giants translates to rubbing minds with them, and the best avenue for that is reading their books, especially if one has no privilege of learning under them live.

In the Scriptures we are told that ’’in the last days (i.e., our days) knowledge shall be increased...'' and this is evidenced by the obvious increased amount of information that is available to us today through the media and the internet. More books are being written in our days than in any other times in history. More discoveries are being made in our days than any other times in history. Inventions are easier today than ever before due to records of previous discoveries. Innovations are daily being made as more products are being improved upon.

We are living in the days of mental giants and how fortunate we are. This to me is the best time to live in the history of man. We are indeed fortunate to see and experience the things our world has to offer today. Minds are catching life changing and history making ideas more than ever before. What was only accessible to the privileged few in time past is now open to one and all. The secrets that used to be thought in special schools in ancient times are now in our days published in books and life is more than ever before an open school. Are you prepared to learn? If you are, then the teacher is nearby.

Life is an open book. But just because the book is open doesn’t mean that everyone will read it. It takes a hunger for knowledge to read. If that hunger is not stronger than other priorities in one's life, there’ll be excuses not to read. There's a place at the top for everyone but if it’s easy to get to the top I guess everyone will be there. It indeed takes discipline to read for personal growth as a leader in this present time of distractions from entertainment and other voices calling for one’s attention. Entertainments, in many cases, are the products of those who had taken the time and the pain to develop themselves. But if you are hungry enough for knowledge - hungry enough to climb on the shoulder of giants, the top is yours.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (7): Loneliness and Sacrifice

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

Here's part of an article from http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/02/23/if-mark-zuckerberg-is-lonely-heres-my-solution/#3e65ac2e26f4

 that fits into today's discussion perfectly well:

Do You Feel Lonely As A Leader? Study Says You're Not Alone.

by Kristi Hedges

Kristi Hedges, Contributor . FEB 23, 2012 @ 10:45 AM

This month, Harvard BusinessReview featured a story about how lonely it is to be the CEO. The article echoed what anyone who’s been a leader or run a company knows well — it’s isolating at the top. Especially for new leaders, the issue can be surprisingly unsettling.

The authors cited survey findings that “half of CEOs report experiencing feelings of loneliness in their role, and of this group, 61 percent believe it hinders their performance. First-time CEOs are particularly susceptible to this isolation. Nearly 70 percent of first-time CEOs who experience loneliness report that the feelings negatively affect their performance.”

Your first reaction may be: cry me a river.

Corporate CEO behavior and lavish salaries haven’t exactly instilled empathy. Should we care if billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg or Jeff Bezos aren’t reaching the top of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

I would argue, any leader’s isolation has negative ramifications on others. And it’s not just CEOs who experience this kind of loneliness — it’s team managers, entrepreneurs, and community leaders too. In fact, anyone who finds themselves peerless can feel isolated. This isn’t good for decision-making, culture, or performance.

The best leaders have confidantes who can give it to them straight, speak truth to power, and keep them in the know. Stanford management professor Robert Sutton warned against the “toxic tandem” of leadership, where those in charge become more self-absorbed and less attuned to others’ perspectives precisely when they need outside information the most.

Many times those in leadership positions don’t feel they have a right to experience loneliness. After all, they worked hard to land their coveted position. But it’s a near universal human response to experience times of isolation in a leadership role. As I discussed in The Power of Presence, relatedness is extremely important to our well-being and effectiveness. Neuroscientist researcher David Rock has shown that it’s “hardwired” with biochemical roots.

Because the leader’s actions reverberate, one person’s isolation becomes a larger problem when it leads to poor decision-making, negativity, fatigue and frustration. And who wants to work for an unhappy person?

If you’re in a leadership role, you can guard against being isolated by making connection a priority. Don’t feel bad about it; view it as a necessity.

The foregoing article aligns perfectly with what I want to discuss today. And they're some of those easier-said-than- done advises that work.

It is Lonely at the Top

You don’t want to always lock yourself up at the top, because, I tell you the top is lonely. Apart from the loneliness you experience for daring to be different as a leader which you can’t really control, withdrawing from the people just because you feel superior is never going to help you in your leadership quest. Leadership is not superiority mindset. You must make friends. Leaders are friendly people. But the kind of friends you make counts. You will need to fill your court with intellectuals, visionaries and mission-oriented people, while you work to help the mediocre and the defeated member of your people rise above their plights.

As said above, the day you discover yourself as a leaders, a temporal loneliness will come as you will become sort of strange to those you use to rub shoulders with prior to your new discoveries. This is true for leaders in established positions and those leading from non-authority positions.  It's not easy to stand alone and not many people can stand alone, let alone doing so for the long term. Some friends may leave you.

But if you know what you're doing prove your staying power, soon enough like minds will find you out. But choose your friends, and do so wisely. You're not called to stand with the majority. If the majority is right, of course, you are with them. If they're wrong you are not going to join them because they are the majority. Leaders are not politicians. Politic is only a vehicle, not the only vehicle, though. But leaders are people with the power of ideology that brings genuine progress. A leader doesn’t look for bandwagon to join. He's not looking for trend to identify with. Leaders are thinkers and change agents who cast better visions. This is what causes the unavoidable loneliness for leaders, especially at the beginning of their quests. Most people won't, on their, own initiate or advocate the right values and stand by it unless they see someone else who can provide the leadership for which they can give support. So your loneliness has an expiring date. You must first prove your resilience and staying power.

If you can bend easily, especially due to opposition and loneliness, you won’t carry weights as a leader. But if you prove yourself with the passage of times you'll surely gain torrents of supporters. Another source of loneliness for leaders (and this is a strength, actually) is that they must separate themselves often for personal study, mediation, prayer and reflections. A leader who doesn’t do so often is like a car going miles day in, day out without refuelling and servicing. The strength of the leader is new knowledge and new inspirations. And he needs regular personal time out for just that.

Sacrifice is the Core of Leadership
You're not a leader so you can be loved; you're a leader because you love your people. Hence, that love must be strong enough to make you ready to put your life on the line for your people and purpose. If your love is not strong enough to cause you to stick out your neck for your calling and followers, if the need arises, don’t venture into visible leadership; the people won’t need you, trust me. Of course, there're numerous other leadership roles you can assume, if you really, really want to serve, but don’t want to make a sacrifice that measures up to your own very life. Such leadership role abounds and many don’t like it because it doesn’t attract fame, accolades and applause. 

Every action from a leader, whose role is visible, will immediately transmits across the entire fabric of the society or group he represents; therefore, it is wise and honourable not to venture into such position of leadership with halfheartedness. It is unfair to hold leadership position and send wrong signals to your people. A leader who risks his very own life and reputation for his people will doubtless raise an army of courageous and fearless followers who will stand with him in times of trouble. Your acts of selfless bravery will inspire such excellence spirit in them that, they too, will willingly risk their own lives, reputations and luxuries to support you. Your acts will surely have multiple effects on your people. If you go a mile for them, they will go more miles with you, fighting by your side. A single but simple act of selfless bravery of a leader can turn the must feeble member of the society into a gallant fighter. Act of example work, and pay. It pays long terms and it pays short terms. It pays, all things being equal, it pays, all things not equal.

What most followers need and are looking out for is example. Acts of example is contagious, both in the negative and in the positive. A negative example, if not checked, is the society’s undoing. Your people want a man who can provide a point around which they can rally. This is your calling as a leader. It's your life. It's your purpose. You must forge your people into an army. Discipline, sacrifice, hard work, purposefulness, honour and dignity are your watch words and theses must be instilled into your people. Resistance will rear it head at the beginning. But with tact, consistencies and personal examples, you will succeed.

You must continually fan into flame the fire of bravery, heroism, honour, discipline, excellence and sacrifice. Be a man of tough words but back it up with acts of examples. Of course, you can’t show practical example in all things but your example must be at a level particular and peculiar to your office. Never give place to fear, indolence and pessimism.  Make them take genuine pride in what and who they are. Build self-confidence in them. Never let any one of them feel defeated by life’s challenges. Never let any one of them exhibit the victim mindset. This is not to say the leader mustn’t admit and exhibit a sense of humour and humaneness. Of course there’s a need for balance.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (6): A Business Mindset of Filling Needs.

by Matthew Ujah-Peter

The Thresholds of Opportunities

A man named Walter once invited his friend Arthur to go for a ride through some undeveloped land in Southern California. They drove through some groves of trees and passed some ramshackle buildings before they arrived at what looked to Arthur like a barren wasteland. Walter began telling his friend about the exciting plans he had for his uninviting parcel of land. Walter’s express purpose of the drive was to give Arthur the opportunity to become an investor in his dream. Arthur was not impressed, and declined the opportunity. And so Art Linkletter turned down the opportunity to buy up all the land that now surrounds Disneyland, the dream-turned-reality of his friend Walt Disney. (As told by David Jeremiah, MasterWork, Fall 2012).

Opportunities rarely appear in labels. What you’re not looking for, you may not be able to make sense of or connect with when it is even tugging at your shirt. When you’re passionate about anything, you see it everywhere. Your passion is a light to your path to opportunities. What inconveniences other people may be exciting to you.  A leader is a business oriented person with a strong sense of foresight, vision...and yes, passion! Passion is the highest form of human desire. It is a desire rooted in the heart and soul. Passion is an undying fervour and enthusiasm. Much had being said about the word enthusiasm. It originated, we are told, from two Greek words: en and theos. En means in, while theos means God. The actual greak meaning is God inside or to be entered into by God or God’s power. So, enthusiasm which is a synonym of the word passion is an energy that a person has from within him which is, in reality, a divine force.

As said elsewhere [see Passion and Purpose], passion is the product of, or an indication of your life’s calling. Passion is not just any desire [see 5 levels of Desire]. Passion, though a desire, is not a cheap desire. It is, in my observations and opinion, the highest form of desire. Passion is the level of desire that helps you recognize and connect with your life’s duty post with unmistakably accuracy. With passion, a person makes connection with a problem that he and his gifts, skills and experiences are meant to solve. It is passion that gets you going in the face of hunger, lacks, pains and ridicules. But we are not going to linger too much on passion and purpose today. For more on that, please, see Passion and Purpose, and 5 Levels of Desire.

The Entrepreneurial Spirit

Being a businessman or an entrepreneur is not like holding a job. Holding a job in an organisation means that you are given a post with responsibilities or job descriptions attached. Everyday’s task in the line of your duty is delineated by your boss. You do your duties and wait for salaries or wages at month end. But an entrepreneur is the visionary, idea generator, structure designer, fund raiser, chief marketing officer, etc. At the beginning, he could be the cleaner, messenger, office clerk, etc at the same time.  What carries him through all these is the energy within – enthusiasm.  But enthusiasm needs an organized environment and atmosphere to thrive and excel. Models, structures and systems must be designed to serve as machinery that can work without him being everywhere for the business. He will surely need intellectual, administrative and financial muscles to accomplish this. While I must not spare words in encouraging you, I must tell you that where those things are lacking, enterprise suffers.

The only genuine source of strength in doing business is passion – red hot passion – that is behind your motive for the enterprise. Genuine and lasting motivation that can weather storms that often comes against business ventures comes from passion. The hotter the passion, the stronger the motivation. I have always believed that motivation is motive for action, while passion is power for action. It is very common and easy to give up in business. There are different types or levels of desires that takes people into business. Passion is a drive and a driver that supplies daily energy for the venture you are undertaking.  In the case of Walt Disney’s example (and stories of Disney’s passion about his dream-turned-reality Disneyland abounds), he saw things that made his family and friends thought he was hallucinating. Eventually, even after he’s gone his dream is still alive and thriving. A leader must re-evaluate his quest and the drive behind it.

As Rev. Tope Popoola puts it in his book, Living Intentionally, ‘’You are either driving something or something is driving you’’. So, what is that thing that is driving you as a leader? Certain level of motivation will wane in the face of challenges that surface in business ventures (or any venture for that matter). The quality and / or quantity of passion driving the enterprise must be, at least up to the challenge coming against it. What keeps your motivations going is the energy called passion.  The quality of passion that motivates you will determine how long and how well you stick with the venture. People venture into businesses because they are propelled by one or more of the following: Desire to make ends meet, Desire for Security, Desire for social relevance, Desire for monetary or financial rewards and Desire to make a difference. These are the energies that carry an entrepreneur through storms and trials that arise in businesses. These 5 drives correspond with 5 levels of needs in the popular Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs.

1. Desire to Make Ends Meet:  This drive is engendered by the basic physiological needs of man such as food, clothes, air and sleep. At the base of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, are the physiological needs which are the needs or desires to meet life’s basic needs. If there is no alternative means of employment, people go into business just to make a living and most businesses started this way. When this needs are met, usually most people begins to look forwards to addressing other needs that naturally exist but hidden from the surface by the immediate physiological needs. When the desire to meet basic need is met, some may choose to be satisfied with this subsistence level of operation in business due to a number of factors such as fear of losing the business if expansion( that is a natural result of business growth) is introduced.

2. Desire for Security: human needs are in layers like an onion. Pill the first layer and the next surfaces. When the needs for air, food, cloth, shelter and sleep are met, the next usually is for security. Security is a big deal for man. He want to be secure from natural and man-made dangers and as well be sure that what he acquired from level one (food, cloths, shelter, etc) are not lost.  Drives to make end meets and for security hardly expand beyond its founder. Out of the desire or a need to create security around the business, the owner may leave it and maintain it at a subsistence, small or at most, medium scale. Business of such nature usually remains in small scale so that the owner can have control over it.

3. Desire for social acceptance: in Abraham Maslow’s theory of needs, the next need on the pyramid is the need for social relevance, love and belonging. We are all social being and want to belong in the society. Sometimes what may drive an enterprise could be this need to be socially relevant and loved. But a business that continues on these bases may not grow as a business ought to. The selfish tendencies of man could hijack the impact of such business. Since it is built around the owner, structures and systems that should give others the platform and opportunity for growth will surely be lacking. Everything is done to feed the yearnings and ego of the owner. Workers in such an organisation, if any at all, rather than being seen as partners and given power and freedom to operate and excel, will be seen as threats or competitors to the owner.

4. Motive for power and monetary rewards: Next is power, or according to Maslow, self-esteem and respect.  They want to be appreciated, rewarded or awarded for their achievements. Many want to gain higher positions; hence they need more power, more money and resources to advance that ambition. Many businesses are born or built to make the owner a dominant force in his terrain. A common feature of such business, if this desire is not checked, is a tendency to be manipulative, fraudulent, and greedy for gains; deceptive in dealings and ruthless. It is not uncommon to see such business pushing fake and substandard products into the market.

5. Desire to make a difference: Finally, this is usually the yearning of the human soul. Everyone has a secret but sacred longing for self actualisation. Self actualisation, according to Maslow, is the peak of human drive that most humans, though eager for and desire to, never get to achieve. But a few individuals, if not many, have being able to. Many go into philanthropy or ‘’social responsibility’’ (community service) while at the esteem needs level, to achieve this, but by and large the quest for self actualisation eludes most. But setting up business models around making a difference from the beginning is a key to attaining this noble quest. In reality this level of desire or need is what is really qualified to be called passion.

With the foregoing in mind, every one going into business must determine from the start why he /she is going into business. The foundational structure of the business will be designed and built for the purpose. Of course, the last purpose for business above, which is the pinnacle of human needs, usually at the end takes care of the first four purposes, needs or desires. It need be emphasised that while this last drive is more or less a spiritual passion, the first four are mostly physiological and psychological or emotional needs. The lines from the Scriptures credited to Christ, sum it all up:

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness and all other things will be added to you. Matthew 6:33.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (5): Following the Process of Genuine Progress

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

''To every thing there is a season,

 and a time to every purpose under the heaven''

- Ecclesiastes 3:1 (KJV)

If the author of the lines above were living in our days and time, I  wonder if he would have written those lines a bit differently, having it in mind that technology and science have made instant gratification synonymous with modern day living. Though technology and science have removed unnecessary long processes, process as a principle that controls life on this planet, cannot be totally removed or sidelined. Life moves along the chain of process and progress is the result of process. Even science follows empirical formula and empiricism means process. But there are components of natural processes that has been removed by technologies so as to streamline life’s transactions. Genetic engineering, for example, is a case in point and a good example of science’s attempt at making life easy by bypassing natural process. The results are not all beautiful, neither are the side effects.

In the quest to bypass long process we have successfully placed our own sojourn on the earth on a really fast lane. But this is not to discredit science and technology. It would be foolhardy and hypocritical of me to discount science. My point is that basic natural process is the pivot of life and sidetracking it in any way is a breach on life principle. We can remove hassles and impediments, but not the laid down rules of life itself. It is we that must follow process. Process doesn’t follow us. We are to keep the laws, not make them. Today young people are in a hurry to become adults and adults are ''regretting'' getting older so soon. We have processed foods, instant this and instant that. There are also the fast foods that are putting people on life's fast lane and driving people really fast.

Young people are the major fans of the entertainment icons and celebrities who made their first millions at a very young age. Their musical videos and the media in general, present them in such light as though these celebrities became rich and famous without breaking a sweat. We are daily bombarded with loads of lists of ‘’world’s richest people of the year’' and all such stuffs and the youths drink all these in without any means of censorship. And whether we like it or not, the message is already passed: you don't need long process to '’make it.’' This translates into breeding a generation of young people that refused to grow up before doing adults' stuffs and a generation that mocks and scoffs at genuine and honest labour. Young people now bend rules, cut corners and play unfairly just to meet up or '’make it'’.

We hardly allow other people the chance and opportunity to gain experience. We don't like to lend our supports to people who are not yet perfect. We boo amateurs, mock beginners and jeer at green horns. We only celebrate professionals, forgetting that these so-called pros were once people we never gave chance to perfect themselves. We refuse to realize that these ‘’gurus’’ we applaud today were people we booed yesterday. They were the once that toiled in the night while we snored away. They were the ones that braved the cold weather while we were wrapped up in our blankets in our comfortable beds. They were the ones that, in spite of injustice, injuries and inadequate facilities and amenities still got out there to work and train while others complained of hard economic conditions and harsh weathers. They were the ones that were scolded harshly just for making mistakes but never gave up.

We treat people as if we learned all we now know from the womb. If all we are good at today were learned from the womb, it will be only fair to be harsh on those who refused or failed to learn theirs from their mother’s wombs. The skills that people pride themselves as having today were acquired over a long period of time and from years of making mistakes, yet hardly will the same person takes it easy with a subordinate who made the same mistake under him / her today. Even though our mistakes were made on other people's jobs we do not want others to make mistakes on ours.  '’Perfect people’’ hardly are patient with others when they made mistake genuinely. But who is perfect, anyways? We rule others with our head while we rule ourselves with our hearts. We can understand when we make mistakes and can give genuine excuses but others have no right to give excuses.

These and other factors conspired to make many young people today place a very low degree of value on hard work and process. When we punish mistakes we do so not with the intention to correct but with the desire and the tendency to condemn. But nobody likes mistakes. We must be kind enough to give people the chance to gain experience. Mistakes in themselves are punishments enough to the person who made them, especially, one who is eager to learn. We should punish acts of neglects and carelessness especially when made repeatedly. Mistakes can results from a number of things. We must first seek to remove the cause before thinking of removing the mistake. But lest this discussion be accused of advocating mediocrity or under performance, I want to make it unequivocally clear that my message is to leaders who know what it is not to be given chance to grow and who want to help others grow.

We would, of cause, be doing injustice to an issue such as this if we neglect to mention that the sickly government policies or lack of good policies in this part of the world contribute immensely to this anomaly. Where else in the world do you have such teaming population of young, energetic, hardworking and success-hungry young people as we have in Nigeria? Yet our government failed to see how such energy can be productively harnessed for national progress. The onus is now on the new crop of leaders that, though not politically empowered, are matching on in the direction of mental revolution. If this generation doesn’t get it right, it might share in the blames when tomorrow comes; and tomorrow is around the corner.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (4): Leading from the Background (or the Unseen Leader)

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

History bears unforgettable records of  (and will always honour) men and women who put their lives, comforts and reputations in jeopardy in order to fight for a course that should bring about changes that will benefit others and not themselves, directly. Among these heroes is the man, William Wilberforce. He stood and fought gallantly and his voice rang through the entire British Empire with an energy and impetus that stood him several feet taller than his contemporaries in the Parliament. David Jeremiah, in the MasterWork of Fall, 2012 edition, says this of Wilberforce:

William Wilberforce, the statesman who almost single-handedly championed the abolition of slave trade in the British Empire, was dwarfed by disease. He didn’t appear to be a person who could accomplish much. But here’s what biographer James Boswell wrote after listening to one of his speeches: ‘’I saw a shrimp mount the table; but as I listened, he grew and grew until the shrimp became a whale.’’

In the third book of the trilogy: GEORGE CHARLES SMITH OF PENZANCE, author Roald Kverndal captures the adventures of Williams Wilberforce in relations to the background role of an equally Gallant historic figure in a much succinct way:

Among the many church and lay people who came to visit Newton in the matter of faith at St. Mary Woolnoth was a confused young Member of Parliament for Yorkshire, William Wilberforce. One cold December night in 1785, he came to seek the guidance of the only one he believed could help him decide what to do with his life. Newton’s unhesitating advice was to stand firm where he was – in the parliament, serving God there as both Christian and statesman.

Had Newton advised otherwise, the loss to the nation, and especially to the cause of abolition of slavery, could have been devastating. Small wonder some have referred to this meeting as ‘’Newton’s finest hour as a pastor.’’ Wilberforce wrote in his diary that he saw that visit with the transformed slave ship captain as ‘’a turning point in my life.’’

The slave trade was at that time seen as a national economic necessity. Even a person of Admiral Nelson’s stature could say that never would ‘’the just right’’ of his nation’s West Indian possessions be infringed upon while he had an arm to fight in their defense  or a tongue to launch his voice against the damnable doctrine of Wilberforce and his hypocritical allies.’’ During the two decades that followed the start of Wilberforce’s campaign to end the slave trade, there were no less than eleven failed attempts to pass a bill to that effect. Still, as Wilberforce endured the continuing loss of parliamentary battles, Newton did as much as anyone to win the crucial war of public opinion. He gave personal evidence in hearings before the House of Commons about series of ‘’butcheries and atrocities’’ so graphic that they could no longer be ignored.

At the same time, Newton did his best to maintain the morale of his parliamentary protégé. After the narrow defeat of yet another vote in 1795, Wilberforce was devastated to the point where he actually talked about giving up the campaign and retiring from parliament. Newton countered that Wilberforce reelection as MP the following year showed that God had further work for him. As Newton Put it with great emphasises: ‘’You have not laboured in vain!’’ The outcome was that Wilberforce carried on. Finally, on March 25, 1807, a bill for the abolition of slave trade passed in the House of Commons – and did so with an impressive majority. Meanwhile, Newton had, in 1790, experienced the grief of losing the unique companionship of his wife Mary. However, it gave him great joy t live to long enough to hear about the passage of a bill that Mary, too, had so long looked forward to

Shortly before he breathed his last – on December 21, 1807– Newton prayed that Wilberforce would live to see the abolition of slavery itself. Otherwise, Newton was convinced, it would become ‘’a milestone sufficient to sink such an enlightened and highly favour’d nation as ours to the bottom of the sea.’’ On July 29, 1833, three days before William Wilberforce died, he did, in fact, experience this victory. Neither Newton nor Wilberforce had, after all, ‘’laboured in vain.’’

William Wilberforce was and still is the face of the Slave Trade Abolition Movement. But without such figures like The Reverend John Newton, the struggle may never have seen the light of the day and if it did, it may have ended in defeat for Newton, for all of Britain and may be, for all of mankind. One man was willing to stand behind a young man who dared to think he can change the course of history. Wilberforce was but one soul, but the many supports he was given by unknown souls gave him a size larger than the size of one man.

As human nature most times exhibits, if what someone else - a colleague, a co-student, a friend, or even a sibling - can do better than you puts him or her in a better light than you, or puts him or her in the spotlight and relegates you to the backstage, it won’t make you feel great. Granted, that there are a few highly confident individuals who are usually not in the least threatened by the success of their peers or colleagues, even if that success shoves them off the stage quietly or in a full view of all. Homo Sapiens of that kind are not easy to come by, no, not in this age of Lights! Camera! Action! But as one who sees himself or herself as a leader, irrespective of position and / or station in life, this grain of hard feeling must be put to death in us, else the oil that powers our leadership engine will be polluted, thereby impeding the entire journey.

The reason we each have our own unique gifting is that each one of us is meant to be a leader in an area and capacity and for a particular purpose.  Though everyone is a leader in one form or the other, all leadership roles are not visible. There are lots and lots of people leading in the background whose works and tasks are keys and form major backbone for the ones that are visible. But as it is with human desires and nature, we all crave the spotlight as those often seen in the lines of their duties - especially those who are the targets of media spotlights -  are the ones often regarded as the more important people. But you and I know that without the roles of those in the background, the works of those in the limelight cannot be seen. For instance, not many people take notice of the studio cameraman, the sound engineer, and other studio crew members that help beam the pictures of TV personalities to the world. Yet, this unseen crew is the backbone of broadcasting.This holds true for most areas of life as far as role playing and leadership is concerned. Leadership is not about the man that is often seen. Leadership is being faithful to your calling, irrespective of publicity or popularity.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (3): Fear, Causes and Cures

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

First, I’ll tell you a story that I don’t mind telling a thousand times over. I was only then a boy of about nine and was in a company of boys about my age. Some were about two or three years older. We all headed to one of the most popular streams in my little town. It was that season of the year when water levels were high. Everyone removed his cloth and jumped right into the stream. It looked so easy. After all, there can only be a few things they could do that I couldn’t. I joined in. No sooner did my body hit that water than I began to struggle for survival. I was drowning. But thank God for one or two of them who quickly noticed that I didn’t know how to swim. In a few minutes they all joined hands and rescued me. I felt bad and ashamed of myself. Though, I can’t now remember any of them making any serious fun of me for my inability to swim. A few weeks and months later, I was swimming like everybody, having learned the tricks afterwards.

Over the years, I have become a bit suspicious of what everyone refers to as common sense. Common sense is acquired from the use of the five senses: smell taste, touch, sight and sound and passed from generations to generations, many of which may be just myths. Some are offshoots of superstitions. This is not to discount cultures and values. But I agree with Malcolm Gladwell, when he says in his book, Outliers, that ‘’the culture we belong to and the legacy passed down by our forebears shape the patterns of our achievement in ways we cannot begin to imagine.’’

Only a few dictionaries would define common sense without using the phrase ‘'sound judgement'’. But the degree of soundness of any judgement is predicated upon the depth and quality of the culture and values behind it. As common as common sense is believed to be, look at what we do every day to ourselves, to others and to our environments. Our daily life's transactions with fellow humans, environments and circumstances of life are all largely based on (or are supposed to be based on) common sense and it is the base on which core values and cultures are formed , even as core values and cultures, also in turn, form the base for common sense, and herein lies my suspicions.
Common sense becomes limiting with a phenomenon I wish I could call '‘the knowledge of evil'’ or ’'the evil of knowledge,'’ whichever way you decide to look at it from. I often wonder if this is not the same thing the Scriptures refer to in Genesis chapter 3. But be it as it may, fear and its power come from what we know and also, from what we don’t know and this is what I call the knowledge of evil or the evil of knowledge.

The Paralysing Power of Fear. Back to my story. Why did I sink? I sank because of the force with which I hit the water with my entire body weight. But why did I almost drown?  It was because I didn’t know that my body could float on water. So the moment I found out that my legs weren’t touching the ground as it was used to and because I didn’t have a clue as to how to stay above the water, fright and panic took over my judgements. Did I know better? My ordeal that day were the results of both what I know, namely, that I was in trouble (and who told me that I was in trouble, anyway?) and also what I didn’t know, which is that I can float on water if only I was fearless.

So, while learning how to ride bicycle and also while learning how to swim later on, my confidence and fearless dispositions came gradually from the knowledge as to how to do it. But how I have often wondered: how or why is it that animals don’t have to learn how to swim? But human being must learn how to swim? As children, we played with puppies and each time we throw them inside the stream, they swam effortlessly. Even mice swim without hitches. So does dead bodies of human beings. Could this be what the knowledge of evil (or the evil of knowledge) is, and does to mankind?

Over the years, I have read quiet a number of books that address fear. In the same token, I have also listened both live and on tapes/CDs, to great teachers and speakers who had offered great insights that have helped me cut that monster called fear to size. While I cannot claim, as at the time of writing this, that I have fully conquered all known fears, my present victory over  my secret fears plus insights gathered over the years gives me some level of qualification to teach others a thing or two on how to conquer this monster. No one is exempt from fears. But with appropriate knowledge, we can get a good handle of it. Please, note that fear an impulse just like anger. Excessive anger can damage things just as excessive fear. (We will discuss anger Under Emotional Intelligence for Leaders in a different post).

Many definitions of fear have being given. One is the acronym: F-false E-evidence A-against R-reality. Another very similar one is (still with the use of acronym): F-false E-evidence A-appearing R-real. This use of acronym is a brilliant way of making it stick to the memory and though I have known this definition since my early twenties, I do not want to take them for granted, for they are true. Fear is fed by wrong cultural beliefs, others’ mistakes and misfortunes, rumours, bad news, personal failures, pains, etc. These are knowledge that we have acquired over the years on life’s journey. But is fear bad on its own? Doesn’t fear also help us a good number of times to avoid dangers?

The Power of Knowledge.  On my primary school badge was the inscription as our motto: ’’Knowledge is power’’. But what did I know about ‘’power.’’ Well, as a grown man, I now know of no other weapon with which to crush fear as I have known of knowledge. As a boy, I used to fear dogs with certain colours of brown-black stripes, thinking they are mad dogs. The first time I was told of a mad dog, it was a dog with same colour. In fact, that particular colour is not even homely for a dog, in my judgement. Till date I still dislike dogs of such colours. But the fear that they are mad is gone with the knowledge that it is not madness that gave them such colour.

Courage is Not a Denial of Fear. But it denies fear of its power to rub you. Also, courage is not an absent of fear. It is having a more superior reason to confront what you fear. If a man wants to save his child from a fire outbreak, the value of his child surely will supersede the fear of fire and give him such courage that will dwarf the feeling of fear. Ironically, greater fear also does supply courage to over current one. A major propelling force in a leader is the force of courage. Courage in the face of fear. The man who leads is the man who‘s bold and audacious enough to step out of the crowd, and this takes courage. Courage, even when fear seems to be breathing down his throat.

But What Really Is Fear? Fear, in reality and in general, is an alarm. Just like the feelings of hunger, anger, bodily pains, emotional shame, etc. These things are there to help us be alert, alive and about things that are our ‘’response –abilities.’’ Without the feeling of shame who will dress up, dress well or behave well? Without the feeling of pains, who will know when fire is burning up his body part he didn’t see? Without the feeling of anger, how would one show strong disapproval? Without feeling hungry, who will eat? And without feeling of fear, how can one be alert and prepared against threats or danger? Needless to bore you with the scientific explanations about which experts had said that the adrenaline which the feeling of fear helps send through our systems is very useful to give the entire body the ‘wake-up call to action’. Since I’m not an expert in that field, I will go no further there.

This alarm that goes off signalling an approaching threat or ’'danger'’ is normal. This is the process that sends the needed messages to our bodies and mental faculties. We know danger only because the feeling of fear is in us. Again, take pains for example. Without the feeling of pains, we would bleed or be sick to death without knowing something is wrong with our bodies, wouldn’t we?  Pains and feelings are signals, so is fear. Beyond that, it becomes obsession or phobia which is an irrational fear. If what causes the signal – which is usually picked by either one or more of the five senses - is worth a fight or a flight then one must do accordingly. But, how do you distinguish between the two if adequate knowledge is lacking?

The more wrong information or adequate knowledge one has, the more paralysing the feeling of fear becomes. Whether or not a person will function on the bases of the alarm on the full stretch; whether the so-called danger remains a danger or not, is dependent on the person’s knowledge about that thing. When we pick up a sound of approaching footsteps in the darkness and/or in a lonely place, our brains can only interpret it based on our frames of reference. What do you interpret that sound to mean in connections with the environment and the situation of the moment? And what do you know about that sound before now? The more the ignorance or the wrong idea you already have, the stronger and tighter the grip of fear. Fear is fed and grows into a monster by wrong mindset and the wrong information as well as lack of good or full information.

Again, to understand fear one must understand that fear, at its primary level, is only a fright. Fright is an impulse. While a baby may not have fear in the real sense of the word, for they have no knowledge, they have frights and so do animals. They shudder at the instance of sudden loud sound such as dropping objects or an adult yelling suddenly around them. This is natural alarm. But with adequate knowledge babies overcome it as they grow. As for the animals, though they have frights, wrong information have no access to them or rather, they have no access to wrong information and so, they swim without going through swimming classes.

The Cure? All we have discussed already is a good cure of fear, excessive fear I mean. For fear itself, as we have learned, is one of the many types of equipment in us. Fear can’t be removed entirely, for it helps us detect an approaching threat or danger. It‘s excessive fear that paralyses us that must be removed and that by adequate knowledge and reasons to be more courageous. The Feeling of fear, like feelings of anger, pains, shame, weakness, fever, etc., is an announcement of approaching something. But, how come even what we hear, truth or falsehood, also sends fear down our spines?  It is still a signal, nonetheless. Whether that falsehood influences our actions afterwards or not is a function of adequate knowledge. One of a leader’s top characteristics is bravery. Bravery is not blind courage, but a confidence that comes right from the reservoir of knowledge within and superior reasons.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER (2): Be Not Afraid of Their Faces

By Matthew Ujah-Peter

I have taken part in officially organised plays only twice in my entire life till date. The first one was in my primary school, in which I played a very, very minor role, during our send-off party after our First School Leaving Certificate Exams. I still wonder why I had to be a part of that play. I don’t remember saying any important line that day.  The second one was a French language play in my junior years in high school and I played the lead role. I wasn’t picked for the role because of any particular acting talent I had, but only that I was a better French language student. 'Monsieur Adesanya', our French teacher, whose classes I indeed enjoyed in those days, happened to be the writer/director of the play. But for his constant and tireless drilling, shyness would have had the better part of me. Even though rehearsals went on for days, I couldn’t reach the peak of my confidence. But on the day of the Lagos state French education event in which we were to participate, several schools, including ours, weren’t called up due to lack of time. Thank God for that ‘miracle’, because while I counted down to our turn to perform, I was still working on myself convincing myself that I could act on that stage in front of the crowd.

Whether it is a drama presentation, speech making or recitation before an audience, facing an audience to deliver or make a presentation is still a daunting task today for even professionals. Especially, if the audience is not one you are used to, say your church, club, class, etc. But of course, one’s level of confidence soars with the passage of time.There's still butterflies in most public speakers’ bellies each time they face new audiences. A common advice, for those starting out in public speaking, is to look over the head of the people, possibly at the wall opposite you which is behind them. Additional helpful tip is to quickly scan the audience in search of a person whose face look friendly and/or interested and connect with him or her temporarily as if you are discussing with him/her and then switch over to another till you can make more friends in the audience.

While this may not come very, very easy at the beginning, it is a good way to go because, I tell you, there are certain faces in some audiences that are very intimidating. So terrifying are some of the faces that it sometimes might seems as though they came just to terrify you. They hardly smile, laugh or even nod their heads slightly, no matter how funny, interesting or profound you might think you are sounding. You think you did your research and prepare very well nights and nights to climb that stage to speak till you encounters those faces. Sometimes you would want to quickly finish your speech and run away that if you aren’t careful, you will skip so many lines in your power points.

This is one reason why professional speakers usually start their speeches with an interesting story or a joke to break the ice. A few tricks work to win total stranger and bring apathetic members of audience to your side than this one. 

But thank God, I started out my public speaking from church setting where we were coached to take cover under the help of the Holy Spirit. Yeah, I know. This is not every one’s cup of tea, but it works, big time. You might have other explanation as to how or why it works, but thank God, it works. As I once described it to a friend, it was as if we were injected with steroid and let loose. After my life in the Spirit Seminar in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal group and hands were laid on me, I lost all fears of facing the crowd. As a young man in my late teen and early twenties then, I used to tell those whose listening ears I could secure that I can speak to any audience, including the United Nations general assembly. And they were kind enough not to argue, at least not to my face.

Why did I go this length and what am I talking about? I have heard people told me not to care or worry about what people say in matters that required taking an unpopular stand. They would say, ‘’so, you are bothered by what people say?’’ or ‘’why do you care about what people say about you?’’ How many who say that really stand their ground when the push of societal and family pressures comes to shoves? How many can defy ‘’cultural law of gravity’’? How many can truly stick to their guns in the face of stormy oppositions? Even God recognises the devastating effects of standing alone apart from or against the majority; hence He had once admonished one of His prophets thus:

'' Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.'' - Jeremiah 1:8 (KJV)

And it is from this advice that I took the title to this message under this leadership series. By using the example of the speaker and his new audience, I mean not to imply that the speaker is opposed to the audience or vice versa. But it is similar to the initial tension and lack of connection that exist between those who  challenge the status quo and dare to offer new  ideologies and ways of thinking and proposing that people abandon what they know to be age-old heritage in favour of their new ways of thinking and living. This is especially so in Africa. The pressure that a public speaker faces - especially one starting out newly or facing a strangely new audience and / or culture - is only but a snippet of that which a person suffers in life who takes an unpopular position in life issues. He stands alone. Even friend who have some degree of belief in his ideologies would hardly dare to stand with him openly. They may stand aloof to see if he will break, bend or stand to the end. If he proves his mettle to the end, of course, supporters will emerge from their hidings, first, in drops and trickles and then in torrents, if he refuses to stand down or back down.

This is the core of the principle of leadership. If you will challenge the crowd, in my opinion, you must have an iron for backbone. People will wonder at the beginning: ‘’who is he? What has this individual got to say? What are his qualifications? What are his past achievements?’’, etc, etc. But as you continue standing your ground, refusing to back down, you get to change apathy to empathy, hostility to friendship and casual observers to ardent partners, over time.Truth is enduring, so must those who proclaim it. You, like the truth you stand for, must stand the test of time. Even, if what you say was rejected along with your person. Even if you are spited along with your ideologies, discouragement, though an easy option, must not be given in to. I have made the mistakes of being intimidated by faces of those in high office, but when after summoning the courage to speak to them the truth that I believe they must hear, I find the facades of rugged facial expressing cracked before my very eyes. Truth is not the products of man. It preexisted all of us – from the first Homo sapiens that thronged the surface of this planet to the modernist. Since truth is superior to us all, those who hold it must not feel inferior for it. Truth doesn’t belong to anyone and it is not made up or fabricated. Only lies are fabricated.

It is not easy to always speak and stand by the truth in this sentiment-infested world of ours any more than it had being in the past. Therefore, everyone is getting more and more economical with it. Worst still is the fact that those who want to hear the truth are even very few. And the voices on our streets are crying: ’truth is dead,’ ’no one speaks the truth anymore,’ ‘it is not easy to find truthful people anymore,’ and so on. The sure reason for this scarcity of truth is that people are afraid of faces – the consequence of telling it as it is. It is the leaders that are custodians of truth, and so, must boldly declare it - truth that will benefit and even save all. Any leader who is low on the supply of truth is lacking a great deal in his leadership roles. The followers can only demand for truth if they know what truth looks or sounds like. There is a new crop of leaders, though, that do not have official post or position but who lead, anyway. They lead from the background. They don’t need official post to recognise themselves as leaders. Their number one instrument and weapon is TRUTH. They are the leaders who tell the truth, irrespective of consequences. They are not afraid of faces. Anybody whose heart yearns for the truth can subscribe to this.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!

THE LEADER

by Matthew Ujah-Peter

God did not design us to dominate one another. We were designed to relate and connect with one another for mutual benefits. The earlier a leader realises this, the better. In every unit of human societies such as the family unit, communities, institutions or organisations, someone or a group of persons from within the unit have to be at the hem of its affairs. Somebody has to do some things on behalf of the people. This is what is called leadership.

The leader serves the purpose of his people. The aspirations of his people are his inspirations. The fact that he has access to resources is not a sign that he is richer than the people. He is given the access to those resources on trust. The access is on trust and the resources are the people’s wealth. That he has more security than other people only shows he is a common concern of the people. He is the people’s asset and needs protection. Those instruments of protection, such as driving in convoy, etc, must not become tools of terror to the people in his hands.

When a leader begins to have personal agenda in leadership endeavours, he ceases from being a leader. When he begins to take advantage of his people’s ignorance, weakness, or trust, he is through as a leader. He has become a ruler, or may be a tyrant. To sustain his evil agenda, he will lie; he will defraud his people and surely he will oppress them. This begins usually as little adjustment here and there, followed by traces of lies, half truths and total withdrawal of important information.

Many leaders who turned out this way may not have started out with such intentions. But when faced with the challenges and the vicissitudes of the game of leadership the temptation to bend the rule will present itself. Some may chose to blend in with popular smart leadership moves and ideologies that say it is not everything that the led should know about. And the circle of secrecy that leads to deception is formed. Of course, the led must not know everything. In fact there are some whose minds are not trained or matured enough to handle certain information. And it is the duty of the leader to draw the line of difference. But in drawing the line, honesty, sincerity and probity must   play their full roles.

The leader must connect with his people. The people are not privileged to have him as their leader. Rather, he is privileged to serve them. He is part of them, after all. If his heart is not beating along with the hearts of his people, he is not qualified to serve them. The following, in my view, are the things that show he is a true leader. These, among other things, are the signs he is truly serving his people:

He identifies with his people’s pains, concerns, goals, aspirations and struggles.

He knows their strengths and weaknesses. He encourages the strong and inspires the weak.

He provides responsibilities and opportunities for his people to serve with him.

He gives them the platforms and chance to grow, thrive and succeed in their own dreams.

He challenges them to prove their own strengths, skills and supports.

He inspires courage, unity and tenacity in his people.

He keeps communication lines open between himself and his people – he listens to them.

He surrounds himself with the best brains in the land, as well as visionaries like himself.

He accepts corrections. He admits mistakes. He accepts his humanity. He knows he is not a deity.

He rewards excellence, heroism and punishes deviants and villains.

He is a believer of and a champion at making sacrifices for common good.

He is a man of his own words. He is also an orator whose words forge his men into an army of winners.

In conclusion, I would like to insist emphatically, that leadership begins from the heart. It is a burden of the heart and energized by the leader’s heart beats. The intelligence of the leader will fly as far and as high as his passion and compassion power it. Leadership is a heart cry. Let those whose hearts are not burdened for their people stay home.

MAXIMUM RESPECT!.

OUTLIERS - THE STORY OF SUCCESS

 Book Tittle: OUTLIERS
Author: MALCOLM GLADWELL
                                                                                                          Outlier

  

 /ˈoutˌlīər/

 noun

1. 1. a person or thing situated away or detached from the main body or system.

   2. a person or thing differing from all other members of a particular group or set

   • 
     
   • Outlier: Separate from the main. Not part of main unit or standing out of a whole part.

An international bestseller, outliers challenges its reader to look again at the concept of success, and this time, differently. Is it  true as most success stories have it, that successful people – the  heroes of such stories – where  usually born into modest or abject poor circumstances and by virtue of their talents, initiatives and grits fought their ways unto a world of affluence and influence ? Did Joseph become Pharaoh’s right-hand man on the sole merit of personal brilliance and insights?  Did the successful indeed rises to stardom and into limelight from nothing – owing nothing to parentage or patronage?

Gladwell argues that people don’t rise from nothing. ‘’it makes a difference where and when we grew up’’. He says. ‘’The culture we belong to and the legacy passed down by our forebears shape the patterns of our achievement in ways we cannot begin to imagine’’

This book is about men and women who did things that were out of the ordinary. In the pages of this book you will be introduced to different kinds of outliers; to business tycoons, lawyers, pilots, computer programmers, rock stars, sport people and more. Why are the Asians so good in maths?  What factors play prominent role in the lives of genius whom we regard as ‘’super humans’’? What separates the very best pilot from pilots who have crashed plains?

Gladwell shows his readers that ‘’something is profoundly wrong with the way we make sense of success’’ the people who stand before kings may look like they did it all by themselves, but ‘’....in fact they are invariably the beneficiaries of hidden advantages and extra-ordinary opportunities and cultural legacies that allow them to learn and work hard and make sense of the world around them in ways others cannot’’.  Also see THE 10,000 HOUR PRINCIPLE  and  THE MATTHEW EFFECT