In a crisis situation, I often wonder what motivates a leader, is it to bring out the best in their people or to bring out that they are the best leader in a crisis situation?
It is interesting to see the response of our world leaders to the Covid-19 virus, be it political, social , corporate, community or religious. I keep wondering what's the underlying motive for them to do what they are doing. Is it to bring out the best in people or is it to bring themselves as the best in a crisis situation.
It is observed that the true character of a leader comes out during a crisis. If we were to critically evaluate the responses of our leaders, we can see an underlying need for self-preservation, furthering an agenda (either their own or their focus group or an idea/ideology), apathy (justified by a so-called greater good) and control (of narrative)
Two groups of leaders fascinate me around the world, they are political and religious leaders. These are two groups of leaders that have historically taken the oath to serve and bring out the best in others but historically many of them have come short of the oath, most of the time.
If we look at events from the past and read between the euphoria and gimmicks we can see the true motive behind many of our leaders, but only if we remember to look beyond the euphoria, gimmicks and charisma.
There is a heart touching scene from the Disney movie Lion King, where Simba’s dead father speaks from the clouds and tells his son,'' Remember, Remember who you are?" Many times it's our blissful forgetfulness of our past that brings us back to the same position of exploitation, fear and helplessness.
During this time in our life, where most of us are facing various challenges that have risen out of the pandemic, remember, historically our leaders from all our various walks of life have come short, some intentionally, some out of ignorance, either way, remember, who you are?
Remember, you are blessed with a brain that can process information many times faster than a computer, you have a heart that can love a fellow being forever, and you have a soul that connects us together. Use your logic, your wisdom and your compassion to create a celebrating life experience during these difficult times.
Remember, leadership is influence, which means each one of us as a sphere of influence, it may be as big as the boundaries of our country, or our company or our community or as small as the boundaries of our home. As you exercise your leadership in your sphere of influence, ask yourself, am I doing my best to bring out the best in my people, or is it a gimmick to create euphoria and fear to either cover my ignorance or to make me look better!
“Be the change you wish to see in the world” - Mahatma Gandhi