I do believe that most of you have noticed that growth is not the result of glorious days in the sun on a holiday island somewhere in the Caribbean. Up till now I have gone through certain times in my life when I can clearly see the growth occurring and feel my roots grow deeper and stronger. What I have also realised is that these times are normally marked by a fair amount of struggle and frustration. It strongly reminds me of Revans axiom: “for any organization to survive, its rate of learning must be equal to, or greater than, the rate of change in the environment”. So... when the challenges come I need to learn.
The key for me so far has been to be pro-active. There is a gap between stimulus and response and in my opinion it is how we step into this gap that defines us. I guess it comes down to what your heart is set on because that is what will guide you through the tough times. This question always comes to me during my tough times: Why do I persist on this path; what is the reward? What kind of fruit do I want to have in my life because of the effort that I have put in? I believe that this is yet another question that is not asked enough in our society and when the answers come they are self-centred and short-sighted. I ask myself who are the real role-models? Who stands out in history? The ones that come easily to mind for me are the ones that knew the value of self-sacrifice: Mandela, Mother Theresa, Jesus, etc.
I aspire to be like these people but the challenge is truly a phenomenal task. Yet again I sit in front of my computer today pondering a growth challenge and whether this is the right route. I do believe it is quite possible to choose a path of sacrifice that leads nowhere. When and how the sacrifice is made is of key importance!
