Leadership has been on my mind for most of this week. On Tuesday, I participated in a webinar panel discussion on leading in a time of turbulence and this afternoon (Saturday at 3pm) I am part of an event where I will reflect on the leadership of Nelson Mandela.
This is my contribution to Mandela Day, which is celebrated every year on the late president’s birthday.
In preparation for Tuesday’s discussion, I had to reflect on what leaders in government and society have been doing and what they can do better. The webinar was hosted by a small company, Resolve and Change Systems, and this made me think about why bigger corporates were not hosting such discussions, which are not aimed primarily at the bottom line, but which seeks to understand the complexities of our society and the world.
My co-panellists were Professor Shirley Zinn, a human resources expert and board member on several corporates, and Geoff Jacobs, president of the Cape Chamber of Commerce. Jacobs spoke mainly about the plight of small- and medium-sized businesses while Zinn gave some advice to larger corporates. I looked at the kind of political leadership we have had during this crisis and will need in future.
We all agreed that all of us have a role to play in determining our future and that we cannot just depend on government or corporates to provide us with leadership. We should all be leaders wherever we find ourselves.
I reflected a lot on this webinar as I prepared for today’s discussion, which is hosted by the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University (BK). I will be talking mainly about Madiba, while Sister Jayanti, one of the BK’s senior leaders, will reflect on the BK leader, Dadi Janki, who died in March.
I have had the honour of knowing and interacting with some great leaders, including Madiba and Dadi Janki, who I last saw at her 100th birthday celebrations in India a few years ago. What leaders such as Madiba and Dadi Janki had in common was that they saw themselves as servants rather than leaders and were not blinded by the bells and whistles that are supposed to accompany leadership.
When Mandela spoke at the City Hall on the day of his release in 1990, he made it clear that he was “a humble servant of the people”. He did what he had to do, including spending 27 years in prison, because of his love for his people and his commitment to serving his people. He set out to prove that, by remaining humble despite his leadership position and then stepping down when he felt he had played his role.
What impressed me most about Dadi Janki were her humility and wisdom. Despite being at the head of an international organisation, with properties and offices around the world, she was never seduced by the trappings of success, as are most of the BK members I have met. A brief interaction we had after I met her for the first time had a huge impact on my life. She told me that my biggest problem was that I stressed too much about things over which I had no control. I realised that we have no control over most things in our lives.
Madiba and Dadi Janki had good memories and could remember things one would not expect anyone to remember. This is one of the traits that often separates leaders from followers: the ability to remember things about the people you interact with. It shows that you care.
As I reflect on them today, I wonder where we went wrong in South Africa. Our leaders have become so consumed with their own self-importance that they have forgotten one of the main lessons in leadership: you need to serve your people if you expect them to follow you.
* Fisher is an independent media professional. Follow him on Twitter @rylandfisher
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.