LEADERSHIP FROM NATURE

One of the most striking inputs I encountered in the CSG 08-09 BOLTS was the talk given by Datu Migketay Victorino L. Saway on Leadership: The Indigenous People’s Perspective. This was peculiarly interesting because it is one perspective originally ours, stemming not from any foreign leadership code but coming from the very culture of our forefathers.

The concept is amazingly simply yet profoundly deep. It links leadership to family, common sense, extra-senses, creativity, the forces of nature and many others. One amazing element I found very surprising is the leadership analogy. It is derived from very simply elements of nature, such as a glass of water, a seed, and the land. Here are some of my notes which I find very rich:

Cup of Water! Even though you get an A (e.g. 100%) in math, it is not enough. Let us see it this way. It is like a cup filled with water to its neck (just like 100% grade) yet it is still confined in the walls of the cup. The message is simple. We should exceed 100%, make it 200 or more% by applying the knowledge, by extracting insights. By doing so, by doing more, the water will spill over, giving water to other seeds, causing new life to spur.

Wala! This is one dialect that should not be uttered by a leader. Saying “wala” means surrendering your creativity and your spirit to sense. Being a leader in the IP perspective means always looking for ways, being very creative. Such as using sticks as tools, leaves as utensils etc. Instead saying “wala”, leaders ought to say “mangita ta”. We will find a way.

Leadership in a cage! This is one enlightening thought! Leadership should not be caged in a structure. It is about liberating ourselves from a structure, going beyond and seeing the bigger picture. By doing so, by having this ability to detach from the structure (pamalandungan) or reflection, we are able to see clearly and act more effectively.

Leadership speaks in many different languages and carved in different cultures but I guess there is one universal element – that leadership is about knowing and taking hold of yourself and the rest will follow just like knowing that the cup is filled enough.