This Youtube video (by Derek Sivers) on leadership was passed around by @occupySD, but it caught my eye for multiple reasons. Like everyone, I thought it was hilarious. But it’s always in those things that are presented the most simply that you find important kernels of wisdom that change your mindset and even your actions.
In this modern frenetic world, we are bombarded with instructions on a daily basis to the point that life becomes overwhelming if you try to follow it all. We criticize ourselves when we “fail” at something, not always because we failed, but because others noticed and commented on our supposed failure. But if you really look at advice passed down over the millenia (yes, in those quotes that we all love to use), then you’ll have noticed that many of those forward thinkers really didn’t care all that much about other people’s impressions. And I think that herein lies a strength that we can all use in our own endeavors. Let go of other people’s expectations and listen to your own. After all, you are your toughest critic.
But the main reason that I bring up the powerful lesson provided by this video is simply that I find other people’s criticisms of the Occupy Wall Street / Occupy Together protests (that are springing up around the world) to be destructive. Actions like this take courage, and it takes people different lengths of time to find their own motivation. This movement is going, like many of the people’s movements around the world, because people are using their humanity as an instructional vehicle for their thoughts and actions. And that’s the one thing that this world is sorely missing right now.
I’m one who believes that leadership isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Simply because we humans eventually fall to the delicious scent of sins like greed and gluttony. No, I’m also not religious, so don’t worry that a sermon is starting. I’ve yet to find a sermon that matches up to life lessons learned the hard way. What the video shows is that the leader is not the key component, but the follower is. This scenario of group think accurately explains actions that we humans follow in group situations. But we also need to realize that any movement is finite in length. And that’s fine.
No, I’m not saying that each movement isn’t important. What I’m saying is that each movement is the fire that finds another source in another person and grows in strength when it’s nurtured. And I think that this is where this people’s movement is powerful. Its power comes because it is causing us to stop, think, and act. When was the last time that anything had this kind of power? If it were that prevalent, then I don’t think that we would have let our world become the abyss that is threatening us all.
Don’t listen to those who offer empty criticism, or tell you to conform to be heard. Your power is actually in your non-conformity because it says that you ARE an individual who has power in your beliefs which won’t be swayed. Keep from swaying. Because that goal in your mind, that vision, is so much more powerful than any construct we create in the tangible world. Everything we build is simply our way to find what we feel is perfect. I don’t think that perfection is ever actually acheived because then we would not be empowered to keep making up more grander visions than the next. Visions are an example of what we value. Leadership isn’t a value – it’s a position that can be used for good and bad. That’s why the people around the leader are so important because they have the power to keep things in balance. Yin and Yang at work again!
But in my opinion, the importance doesn’t lie in the leader or the followers. It lies in what they build together, and how they do the building. If it’s a true group effort where the participation is equal and cognizant of one another, then the outcome has a better chance of reaching their shared vision.
As a final thought: This #OccupyWallStreet movement is in its infancy, so it’s still transitioning. It will be hard. Everything worthwhile usually is. But we all need to be doing other personal movements in conjunction with this particular people’s protest if we actually want to create good change for the world. This movement isn’t the beginning or the end – it’s one more link in the chain of humanity’s search for survival and meaning. It took us centuries to get to where we are. It will take a long time in order to change ingrained mindsets. Because they are just as tough as the toughest elements in our world. But we have the resilience to continue because we all have dreams. Martin Luther King may be famous for this thought, but he knew its power lay in the fact that this is what makes humanity so great. Our dreams, our hopes, our efforts – not for transitory wealth, but for a greater future for us all. Our empathy and our humanity are our strengths, and we’re finally using them as they’re meant to be used – together.
If you want to help #OccupyWallStreet, then visit their main site or their sister city branches near you. They’re growing every day and they need our help.
And if you want motivation, well, how’s this (note that it’s from the UK)? Or this: USW Supports “The Occupy Wall Street” Protest Movement
