Tag: stories

Christmas and leadership

Using the power and energy of the human voice, we have gathered to share stories from times immemorial. We have passed on creation tales and tragic stories, repeated family history. Storytelling has been imbued with ritual and occasion. Members of tribes and various collectives have gathered around the fire to hear how their lives were interwoven with that of others.

Storytelling is also the art of repeating over and over because you believe that each time you hear it, you come to the story as a different person, and view the plot and characters in a new light. Hearing that story is a way to gauge where you have been and where you are now on our path of personal growth. It is also part of raising younger generations, so that they can pass it on to forthcoming generations.

Yet I noted how most formal traditions of storytelling are lost. It doesn’t mean that I have to be without. I can begin new practices, learn to listen to another, to speak honouring his or her unique stories and uniqueness, witnessing the different journeys of those around me without imposing mine. 

By building new practices of storytelling we learn to lead in a new way. We give ourselves and the ones we love an opportunity to draw closer in our shared human experiences. Long live the stories around Christmas and all traditions!

Leadership versus “going it alone”

There is something very special about seeing an old friend coming back into one’s life. I received a message recently from an old friend from high school, who found me through social media. Thirty years may have passed since our last encounter. I was as startled as if a ghost had visited, and a rush of joy as if I had lost a precious gift and found it again.

Every person that passes through our lives makes a contribution; some are brief appearances, others significant challenges, but many add to our life stories. When fate brings old friends back into our lives, there is always a reason or some meaning. It helps reconnect with a part of us we may have forgotten, bringing a missing piece from our lifelong puzzle, a part of us we lost and needed to nurture, another opportunity to address an old situation to move forward.

If this hasn’t yet happened to you, you may be meant to initiate the experience and reach out to an old friend. Be sure to look beyond the surprise of the moment to grasp the deeper meaning this gift reveals. You may realize how we are not meant to discover our path on our own. It is through connections and reconnections that we find our way. Leadership isn’t about going it alone.