Higher Ground by Irene Rivka Becker, Chief Success Officer, Just Coach It
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead, American Anthropologist
In the past hundred years, and particularly the last fifty, our access to knowledge, information and technology has burst forth faster than ever before in human history. And, with it, the reality that we live in a world that is interconnected by technology gives each human being the incredible power, the opportunity to connect with like minded people, and make a positive and powerful difference that would otherwise have been impossible.
Clearly, we have the knowledge, technology and information to solve most of the world’s problems. Clearly, more has been written on leadership than ever before, and yet most of us would agree that that the type of servant leadership that moves mountains and molehills is conspicuous in its absence. And, many of us wake up and go to bed feeling dis-empowered, or with a nagging sense that something is missing from our lives.
So what has happened? At the cusp of this new age, fifty years ago, Albert Einstein wrote that his greatest fear was that our technology would outstrip our humanity. What happens when our technology outstrips our humanity? Let’s take a look:
· In the shadow of ten decades or four generations, over 100 million people have died in wars. That translates into one million lost every year for the past hundred years of unsurpassed knowledge, information and technology.
· Meanwhile, the divide between the haves and the have-nots in North America continues to grow, creating economic and social ghettos of poverty, despair, discouragement that have create a whole new anger that rages. An anger that will ultimately spill over into the gated communities that shine and sparkle in the sunlight, and into the middle class neighbourhoods that were always the building block of the American dream.
· A whole new anger and rage that will be a force to be reckoned with as within the next fifteen years 30% of the American workforce will be populated by those who have been traditionally marginalized.
· We now consume more violence and senseless crap in our popular entertainment, and our food than ever before. And, a whole generation of kids are glued to games that have them working as hard as they can to rip limbs, heads, arms and heads off virtual characters.
· Marriages, families are torn apart on a regular basis with divorce rates that have soared to 70%.
· Most of us do not know our neighbors, and some of us are afraid to even ask who is living beside us.
· We all need a community, a village to help support and nurture us, but we can no longer find it in our neighbourhoods and families, so we reach out and build virtual communities.
· Pornography is now the most popular thing on the internet. People meet virtually, and now they have sex virtually. No real human contact, no intimacy, no humanity.
Can we use the past to create the future? More and more of us are beginning to realize that the future is now. And, it is a future that will be different from the past because the leadership we seek must start from inside out with making the decision to embrace personal leadership. Whether one is a captain of industry, or sweeping the warehouse floor, the capacity to lead starts with resolving to make choices that are aligned with the values we cherish. This resolve is true power. It is power that may not be expressed in short term gain, but it will be expressed in the sustainability of a better human, personal and business bottom line. It will be expressed in our ability to move away from the chaos that surrounds us and embrace higher ground.
How do we find higher ground? By embracing our unique power to serve, for it is through service that we fill our pocketbooks and our souls. Margaret Mead spoke about thoughtful human beings being the only true catalyst for positive change. And, today the imperative to build a new geography of thought, a new balance of independence and interdependence that will allow us to tap into our collective intelligence, spiritual power and emotional power is not important it is critical.
We can find higher ground in every moment of the day. We manifest the future every day in the choices we make. Every choice that we make either brings us closer to the values we cherish or not. Every choice helps tap into our highest power, our spiritual anchor or not. Every choice resonates with our humanity and raises the bar on our faith, hope, courage and leadership, or not. And, sometimes finding higher ground means making choices that will give us short term pain, but open the pathway to long term gain, fulfillment and peace of mind.
Every choice that we make impacts our lives and the lives of others in ways we cannot even begin to imagine. Whether you are a captain of industry, or sweeping the warehouse floor each day presents you with an opportunity to raise the bar, an opportunity to take the road less travelled, and embrace your humanity. An opportunity serve with your head, heart and soul aligned is an opportunity to become a servant leader. And, when we look at our life through the eyes of what is truly important, the way in which we serve G-d, and our fellow human beings is the most important thing of all. It is the relationship that we build with our Creator, and with the people with whom we share our world that will fill our pocketbooks and our soul. It is the memory of these relationships, of the moments when we led with our head, heart and soul that will comfort us when our journey on this earth comes to an end, and we leave behind all that we have purchased and acquired.
Take this moment to celebrate that you are unique, and that you have the power to do more than follow the trend, the flow, the status quo, the road most travelled. You can reach higher ground. You can decide anytime you choose to lead, to make a positive difference, an important difference in your life and the lives of others by embracing the power of your head, your heart and your spirit, by celebrating your humanity in everything you do