Owning yourself

The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe. If you try it, you will be lonely often, and sometimes frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself.

Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)

Rule by force

Here's another gem that I've learnt from my time as a personal secretary of a prominent politician.

Over a casual conversation, our subject had turned about political rule and the wrestle of power by force.

"You know..." he said, "When a politician overthrows the country by force, that rule is only temporary, because he will always be looking over his shoulders to see who would be after his head next."

Simply put, unless one is democratically elected to that position and rule by the will of the populace, he will not be tolerated nor accepted. As opposed to the population making a "wrong choice" by electing a leader whom they may later regret, at least they won't be demanding his head literally. They, too, will bear the blame for having made their choice. But when rule is obtained by the barrel of the gun, it is almost alway certain that he will pay with the price of his head.

Likewise, this also applies to work. Unless a captain is democratically accepted by his men, that person will eventually suffer the wrath and consequence of his failure in obtaining their approval. Rule by force, intimidation or fear is older than "old school". That went out with France's King Loius 16th who, as you might recall, was executed in public in the 18th century. So, where that theory of rulership by force came from is anyone's guess...

Leadership by example

There was once a prominent politician who told me that he was like a general who commanded his soldiers from afar, across vast distances away from the actual battlefield. Well, to be exact, from another country.

Now, this must be one of the most profoundly dumbfounding theories of leadership I’ve heard, and believe me, I’ve heard and seen a lot of stupid things done in the name of “generalship”.

Ever wondered why real generals like Napoleon, Castro and Rommel command such respect and honour from their soldiers? Simple – they fought with their men on the battlefield. What their soldiers ate, they ate. Where their soldier fought, they fought. They were not generals that were aloof but were soldiers themselves. And there is precisely where they draw their strength of leadership and respect from.

I have witnessed too many so called “generals” who were elevated into positions of rule, who failed miserably to gain the respect of their subordinates because they believed that they could afford to live the life of kings while the rest of the troops go through wars.

They believed that they were “above” eating the food that the soldiers ate, that they were “above” fighting the same battles the soldiers fought. In a phrase, they failed to “walk the talk”. Their words are indelibly emptied of their meaning because they have become mere words since they believed that it was “beneath” them to be on the same battlefield as soldiers like the rest.

So yes, it is true when it is said that “there are no bad soldiers, only lousy generals”.

Money changes people

Very often you'll hear people say that "money is the root of all evil", a phrase that is taken out of its context from the Bible. The actual reads "the love of money is the root of all evil".

Money by its own is inanimate and therefore is incapable of good or evil. It is only people that either make money their master or servant. And I have seen much of how people will fight tooth and nails for money.

I have seen how two cents more turns people into emperors, how a little more money changes mindsets, principles and behaviour. Hautiness and a disregard for another.

Make no mistakes about it - the love of money drives people to do some very ugly things. And when they do get it, their characters change, more often than not to become even uglier. No matter how poor of rich a person is, they will change. Suddenly, they are only suited for first-class treatment, to be looked up to by everyone, including God, and well, you know the rest...

And overnight, every person is "suddenly" measurable by how much they make and how much they have in their bank accounts. Suddenly, the value of humanity is measured by the amount of money they possess. Considering that each human life fought trillion of odds to be alive (from the time when their are conceived to being on exactly the right planet with right temperatures, right conditions for living), any monetary value one puts on human life is nothing less than an insult. It is a slap in the face to your own Creator.

Hmm, maybe he's just saying that now because he hasn't made his millions yet, you may think. Hey, maybe you're right, maybe it's just me venting out frustrations of not having enough money. But just so that we can be sure... maybe you would like to send me some money and see if I do change?

Jack of all trades

The cliché of “Jack of all trades, master of none” is used often to heap ridicule on others without any specific field of specialisation, as though a single professional qualification stands better than its alternative.

Oh, wait, hold on… try keying in the phrase on wikipedia.org and hey, presto! Up comes another story that’s quite the opposite.

Here’s what it says: “The full quote "Jack of all trades, master of none, though ofttimes better than master of one." is actually a compliment”.

It further describes such “Jack of all trades” being what’s called Renaissance or Polymath people to the likes of Da Vinci, Copernicus, Newton and Goethe, amongst many. You know, people with multi-specialisations. Yes, you’ve heard right – MULTI-SPECIALISATIONS. These people mentioned are scientists, authors, musicians as well a s a host of other specialisations, all rolled into each one.

See, whoever presumes that one specific specialisation is necessary for everyone has severely underestimated the full capability and potential of humanity.

The human body, mind and spirit is able to expand far more than what we’re been seeing these days. Ultra-marathoners are pushing more than two times the distance of traditional marathon runs and athletes are pushing numbers and boundaries as never before thought possible. Tibetan monks are able to break into sweat in the middle of the Himalayan mountains in minus freezing temperatures wearing nothing more than thin loincloths, and the list goes on and on…

I wouldn’t be surprised if we’ll be splitting nothing into two halves of nothingness given that we’ve already gone way past splitting atoms back in 1932.

Hence, perhaps it’s time to stop playing the broken record of how one field of specialisation defines a person and move into the real world of change and evolution in humankind that is setting new standards of excellence beyond that which has been preached by our forefathers.

It’s time to multi-specialise. Why? Hmm… simply because we’re able to?

Path to sainthood

You see it all the time. You witness how people get so uptight about any petty remark, getting into fits just because someone commented something negative about them. It may just be a tiny remark, it doesn't matter.

These people have a need to show off to the world that they are perfect and spotless. And they will will lie, cheat and kill just to maintain that image. Everything must be swept under the carpet to preserve their "honour".

Here, the are two very important points that they fail to realise in the course of their unending endeavour to projecting themselves as "saints".

First, rule number one kicks in - one will bounce off to the direct opposite direction when pushed against one extreme. See, whenever someone goes off on tandem to one extreme, there will be a "breaking=point" where they will go off and do the extreme opposite. That's why you have priests committing the very sins they condemn, politicians doing the very things they abhor, and the list goes on...

And the second point - best summed up in one phrase : "Those who fail to laugh at themselves".

See, the ability to laugh at ourselves and not take ourselves too seriously is far more important than one might think. It is a sign of maturity. It is a sign that tells us that life is too short to live it in such uptight manner.

Think that everyone's so interested in your "sainthood"? Think again.

No one cares that you're always presented spotless for they know that there is no one on earth who's perfect(unless of course, you're God!). People are hungry for reality. People are hungry to know that their leaders are humans and that they, too, make mistakes.

Snake oil salesmen

Recalling how western movies used to have a typical con-man who goes around selling miracle snake oil, just brought memories of the scores of “brokers” that once crossed paths in my line of work… or even nowadays for that matter.

Always dressed in their sharpest with an air of mystery that cloaks them, these people spoke as though they knew every single important person in the world, whether it be presidents, ministers or corporate bigwigs.

Yet, I remember the time when one of them tried to make a deal with “no money up front and no strings attached” where we would travel to London for a forex deal. I promptly told him that it was okay by me, just so long as we get to take care of one of his relatives in a third country (all-expenses paid) and that if anything should go wrong, that that would be the last time he will ever see his relations again.

The conclusion? He bolted faster than a horse on fire.

See, the deal is always first sweetened with a “no money up front and no strings attached”. It is only along the way that “problems and situations” seem to appear that require a little money to “grease” the path… And depending on how much you can afford to “grease” will be the duration you will still get to see his face. Get the message now?

Just remember one cardinal rule: “When they tell you it’s not about the money, it’s about the money”.

The ostrich technique

Here's another additional point to my earlier blog on leaders being true leaders when they are tested in the lowest ebb of their lives. How they manage under such hopeless conditions make them real generals... world's apart from the wannabes that crack easily.

This has to do with listening. I have met many, many wannabes that are placed in those positions merely by their wealth or appointments.

And their biggest mistakes? They can't take criticisms nor are interested in listening to any dissenting views. So, they either bury their heads in the sand, or in many cases, appoint another wannabe general to "hold the fort", choosing only to deal with their appointees.

This is a syndrome where they figured that if they don't have to listen to bad news, it will "all just go away" magically.

For these people, when they do wake up, when they do take their heads out of the sand, it would have all been a little too late because nothing ever magically goes away. All things will compound.