The Drama of another at my side

As a foreigner I have experienced the great advantages that come from being so. While you are in your country and your own culture you are suppose to accept the set up standards; in a new environment you are free to accept some things and reject others. You can choose to say some words and simply just don’t speak others, you can dress in a different fashion than everyone else’s, no matter what the culture, the surroundings or society might say about it.

Nevertheless, there are things which are more difficult to be liberated from than others, such as the violence on Colombian ground and one of its hardest forms: the kidnapping. I have never been close to being kidnapped, but I had been in violent areas. The strongest memory I have of such a time is related to a town in the area called el Chocó.

This is typically a department in Colombia with a high number of african descendents, but I was surprised to find at my arrival to San José del Palmar, a basically white population, mostly migrants from other parts of Colombia. There I had the opportunity to coexist with the people, take baths with buckets due to a shortage of water, and to see beauty in nature, so close to me.

I went there to dictate conferences on human values, to different people from various religions. In a certain part of the city, in another side of the mountain, I found myself in front of the resistance of one of my hosts. I didn’t understand much why he was acting so and it was only later that I discovered the reason: somebody had been kidnapped at his own place. He could never forget the feeling of impotence he had while his guest was being removed from there.

In this situation I experienced the power of a pure and positive thought. It worked as a protection to me, no so much physically, but rather psychologically, because I felt protected from the fear that used to pervade in the country then.

I have experienced this protection as an umbrella, which would not allow the rain to get me wet or like a harness that well prevent me from falling or being hurt. There, in those Choacan lands, I saw a man whose violent attitude seemed to create a negative aura around him; at that moment I was bathing in a not quite typical river, with its bed covered with oval form pebbles. I thought positively, I let the purity of my feelings take my mind over. Later they will confirm that in effect, that man was an actor within the violence, but my thoughts had changed him and to me he was a human being. Just like me.

But, besides a feeling of personal protection ¿could it be that the thought might also generate protection for others as well?

Another experience of the power of thought turned out to be almost magic. Trying to cooperate with the kidnapping situation, Brahma Kumaris organized a conference for the families of the people held hostage. In took place in Medellin, with Sister Jayanti, the teacher that coordinates BK affairs in Europe.

Days before the conference, we started to get lots of persistent calls from a lady. She identified herself as the sister of a judge that had been kidnapped. For two years she had not heard a word about him and she wanted to have an appointment with Sister Jayanti. Unhappily we couldn’t arrange for a time in her agenda, but we invited her to the conference. She accepted. I cannot describe what I really felt that day. At some point it was as if I was floating on the air while I translated the sweet and powerful words of Sister Jayanti. In short, she was talking about the importance of thoughts and personal feelings. What each person felt will reach not only those who were suffering but also will reach those who were making them suffer.

At the end of the conference, I had to take my role as organizer, trying to speed up things because we had to go to the airport and be on our flight on time. But, against all odds, that same lady that was so insistent somehow managed to get on the stage and approach Sister Jayanti, who in turn simply held her hand very sweetly, look at her deep into her eyes and repeated what she had just said. The feeling of the moment was great, but we couldn’t give her much time and so we departed.

Two weeks later, her brother was liberated.

Yes, may have been a coincidence.

Yes, may have been that they pay the ransom.

Yes, may have been other reasons, but to me it was the power of that lady’s thoughts that were able to reach her brother’s heart and the hearts of those who were holding him captive.

Very often I prove those types of thoughts. When a problem arises in my life or in the lives of others, before reacting, I go within my own self, gaining access to the power of my own thoughts.

Today it has become my main form of overcoming any obstacle that may arise on my path. I cannot prevent the problems to be there or the violence or the kidnapping of people, but I can change the way I think, protect myself and protect others as well.

---

Marcelo Bulk

(this paper was submitted to the Call of the Time, Medellin, December 2010)

Leadership and Values in the Organization

Present leadership, as it has always been, is a exercise of overcoming important challenges. One of the most complexes nowadays is to link the need to prioritize the human, social and environment and the natural need of profiting in business.

For that, it is fundamental to redefine leadership as the practice of wisdom - something we often remplace with knowledge. Wisdom is irreplaceable as it enables the leader to visualize new paths in his/her daily practice.

 

But, how to develop wisdom? How to get to that modern and conciliator leadership?

One of the ways is to start from within, to start from the most personal values. First we build-up our self-leadership and, based on those personal values, we perform the role of a leader.

"Think of a commited and inspirational leadership, and a plan shared by all and based on the respect that exists in the organization. Think of a possible sinergy between people when there is harmony and trust. In this way, it is possible to understand how values are important in the alignment of all the factors."

Valores Humanos no Trabalho, Ken O'Donnell

Success or failure?

I must admit - I seldom buy magazines, books or newspapers. I prefer their e-version with the advantages that come with them: you can explore what you are reading, interconneting the information with other data in the net, and, yes, it is cheaper (free! sometimes).

However, when I travel, from time to time, I do buy something for enternaiment or just out of curiosity. After ages, I've bought an edition of NewsWeek and, not sure if the quality came back (last times I've read, quality was pretty down), or I was lucky, but reality is it was a very good edition (September 20, 2010).

Among the many interesting stories and articles, one drawn my attention. I've read it before as our Colombian main newspaper (El Tiempo) has talked about it before, but it was good to read again.

Julia Baird question the topic of success, helping us to redefine that word. And it really resonates with me a lot.

If I look with the world's glasses, I will find my whole life as failure, as I am going quick as a bullet-train towards the 50s. But, I feel good, I have so much to give and I have a full schedule. Always a full schedule.

So, who is really successful? Is it the guy with the best cell phone, best car, living in the best part of the town? Or is success something so internal that any attempt to measure it from the outside can just create a deep sense of disillusion.

I invte you to read the article and to share your view. You are probably more successful than you've thought. Bye.

The Rubbish of the Economy

Here in Panama, where I am living for a few months, I start to think what is Economy, really?

With fears for a new recession rising in the air, and no leaders who can give an answer or solution for that, isn't it time to re-think worldwide Economy? Our model didn't work - let's be sincere. There are MUCH more poor people than 50 years ago, even in terms of proportion, and it does not look that will change soon.

We have tried several models for an Economy that did not prepare itself for a world of so many billions of people and the Internet, which united us all, at least in theory.

The problem in re-thinking the Economy is that the only solution I see is individual, not collective. As individuals raise their own awareness and start to  use resources and trade in a more efficient and eco-human-friendly way, economy will shift naturally. I like the example of WholeFood chain in USA, and that is only one sample of what is changing in the world.

Do you know why I started to think about that? Rubbish! Yes, rubbish! Panama is going through a rubbish collecting crisis and so, when you walk around, you have to bear the horrible smell and deviate of huge amounts of rubbish. Sad scene, as the city is so nice and people are great! But, I've learned you can always learn a lesson with everything - whilst people with less resources, their streets were dirt and their rubbish was, well, more "rubbish-ish", people with more resources managed to have clean streets and even their rubbish was much more organized.

Yes, if the resources we waste are better organized, it is quite probably we used the ones we did not waste in a better way. Check your rubbish by now and see how is it...

The individual awareness of his or her own rights over the resources must be re-assessed. What do you or I really need? How much of it? Can we afford to have less of that? Can we change whatever we use for something which does less harm to the world?

Have a nice time!!

A leader

In my last post, I've talked about my own perception of not having leaders around us. But, I must say, we do find some exceptions.

The miners in Chile are an excellent example - how they are OK after being trapped for 17 days and knowing they will have to spend until Christmas there? There has to be a leader there, someone who was able to touch their heart and give them the force to do what, in another situation, they wouldn't be able to do. I think we should all clap that group of people and their leader for this achievement, no matter what happens in the future.

Then, I think, would I be able to do that? Would I be able to stimulate a group of people, living in such an extreme condition? I am not sure of that. And, yes, we do need that kind of leader as our world is reaching extremes only thought in old prophecies.

Can you be that leader? Can we prepare ourselves to be such a kind of a leader? I do think we can. I can. You can. It requires effort, a new perspective, a totally new set of values and paradigms. But we all can.

Let's not forget the miners in Chile, let's follow their example. Have a nice day!

Lost leaders

If I am not mistaken, I've only tried a Rollerblade once in my life. Not a good experience, it seems I am not gifted with this wonderful sense of equilibrium others have (or my instructor was too bad). Anyway, I remember myself sliding all around, like a crazy guy.

Sometimes, when I hear a leader's speech, or any comment made by him, I have the impression they are all lost in Rollerblades. All of them incapable of dealing with it.

We came from that era when leaders could do whatever they want, to a time when they could not all they want, to the present time, when they don't even try to do it. Is it fear of failure? Fear of not being reelected or being fired? I am not sure.

I think the main reason we lost our leaders and our present "leaders" are lost is the fact that nobody really knows what is right and what is wrong. Many things that used to be wrong, are now considered right and vice-versa. Another reason is that they don't have self-leadership. Yes, they have many talents, but they are not leaders for themselves. So, who will listen to someone who does not even listen to himself?

I am not sure there is a clear solution to that. Nobody would like to go to that time (although some are going towards there) when leaders used to do whatever they wanted. But, on the other hand, no-one wants a leader who literally does nothing more than promises and smiles.

Probably best solution is for all of us to develop our own self-leadership, so that we are able to follow the leader as much he/she is correct and follow your own ideas when they are right.

Politics and my inner policy

Whenever you want to learn another language, the worst part is when you have similar words to yours, but with different meaning. All languages have that case unfortunately, and in English I find the case of "politics" and "policy" (if you are puzzled about their difference, check it out here).

Due to the politics, I live in a region of constant tension and conflict. I've come to Colombia about 17 years ago, when the relations with one of its neighbor, Venezuela, not only were good, but excellent. The deterioration is being huge and as I don't believe in blaming anybody, I can say it is because of politics.

The damage it is causing is beyond repair now I guess. Just a small example: last year, whilst travelling to Portugal, I went to Caracas to take my plane (TAP, excellent airline by the way). I think it was some kind of "revenge" by local TAP, but they made me go through luggage manual checking, which meant GETTING OUT to the luggage area. I guess it was about 40 C at least and people there were quite ruthless... until they hear I was not Colombian, but Brazilian. The change was visible, and no damage happened except a shaving cream which was thought to be a drug container...

The damage in the relations of these two countries is beyond economic effects (most of the food Venezuelans used to consume came from Colombia, and many Colombians used to go for holiday there); it is psychological, it is going inside the heads of people who start to really believe Venezuelans or Colombians are bad people.

In these cases you always find exceptions. They are people whose heart is not in politics and their inner policy is to keep a distance of all that noise. I lived a similar situation in Brazil, when our dictators decide Argentinians would be our "bad people". We learned to really hate Argentinians (and not for the same reason some LatinAmericans do), and with no reason, really. Even though I have been working in my own self, I can't say I did not feel a little pleasure with their defeat by Germany which tells about the good job our dictators did.

I feel it is important to create an inner policy, to avoid being influenced by silly or serious things that can damage all of us in the short or long term. And hating another people because their language, religion, skin or government is different, it really has a bad effect on the soul.

When I am able to do it, then I can see things in a more neutral way. I can make decisions with more accuracy. And the results promise to be much better.