I am reading the book Change Your Thoughts Change Your Life Living the Wisdom of the Tao by Dr. Wayne Dyer. Verse 17 of The Tao is very enlightening talking about leadership principles. I thought that those of you who are parents might gain something from this so I thought I'd share:
Verse 17:
With the greatest leader above them,
people barely know one exists.
Next comes one whom they love and praise.
Next comes one whom they fear.
Next comes one whom they despise and defy.
When a leader trusts no one,
no one trusts him.
The great leader speaks little.
He never speaks carelessly.
He works without self-interest
and leaves no trace.
When all is finished, the people say,
"We did it ourselves."
In this chapter Dr. Dyer talks about the role of Leader being exchangeable with teacher or parent. I thought is was a great lesson for parents I wish I had learned years ago. He interprets this verse explaining that as an good leader you;
stay in the background, be an astute observer, act with out interfering, create an
Verse 17:
With the greatest leader above them,
people barely know one exists.
Next comes one whom they love and praise.
Next comes one whom they fear.
Next comes one whom they despise and defy.
When a leader trusts no one,
no one trusts him.
The great leader speaks little.
He never speaks carelessly.
He works without self-interest
and leaves no trace.
When all is finished, the people say,
"We did it ourselves."
In this chapter Dr. Dyer talks about the role of Leader being exchangeable with teacher or parent. I thought is was a great lesson for parents I wish I had learned years ago. He interprets this verse explaining that as an good leader you;
stay in the background, be an astute observer, act with out interfering, create an
environment inspiring everyone to act responsibly.
inspire by example creating space for others to achieve their own
greatness/accomplishment developing their own leadership qualities/ability.
be of service making a difference in others lives resolving conflicts with love and
praise, (other tactics create fear of the leader, they will act opposing you in your
absence, despise you, defy you, detach from you for dictatorial adult/leader tactics).
praise, trust them in their own decision making process even when their behavior may
conflict with yours.
take pride in not taking credit for their achievements.
He quotes Hafiz describing this in a poem:
Even
After
The sun never says to the earth,
"You Owe Me."
Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the
Whole
Sky.
Love those you're intrusted to lead, just like the sun loves our planet. Simply be there to serve, never demanding anything in return.
As I wrote a few weeks ago about my sermoning my children rather than acting on the knowledge that children primarily learn by example anyway. This is such a beautiful expression of that same lesson. Allowing children to make their own decisions, pay the price of the consequences of their own decisions as children when the natural consequences are are far less severe than the consequences of the decisions made once they've moved out on their own. It is so hard to "shut up" when they are in your charge, you just want to help and protect them from hurt/pain. But the lessons, self confidence and empowerment they achieve through this process will serve them in developing leadership qualities of their own. And then when you're not around to provide your guidance, such as when they've become a teen, they're out with their friends, this is the time they need to have been well practiced at deciding for themselves.
I found this to be profound advise not just in business leadership but parenting:
I hope this was of value to you.
Love you all,
Jacky
