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Creating & Fostering paradox for the Greater Good

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  What? Sometimes, as humans, we can get so trapped in a single path forward. Maybe it is the path of least resistance or what we feel is the only right way, but it is often, truly just the path we are used to. It seems this is because when you think of beliefs, actions, or ideals that are contradicting , we tend to overanalyze what contradicting means at its core; We hear contradicting and assume that opposite is innately negative. We witness contradictions and assume that they cannot exist in such a paradoxical manner (Yip, 2010). Some of the largest, leading and quite successful organizations or companies allow those paradoxes to be used as “leverage” in finding a transformative path forward (Yip, 2010). Often times, this can lead to out of the box solutions and more comprehensive perspectives that are used to outdo competitors (Yip, 2010). So What? Learning to lead through paradoxes can be challenging, because you must be willing and able to broaden your perspective and w...
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Don't let others talk you out of trying to make a difference

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  What? During this Manifesto, we have talked about reconnected to courage at length; Courage can sometimes be seen as doing the right thing, the big thing. Sometimes though, courage is just acknowledging the harsh reality or keeping hope alive when it seems bleak. So many times, burning out can be a large obstacle to overcome to return to this state of hopefulness . As individuals stay longer in a certain place or field, working towards certain goals, failing, succeeding, ebbs and flows of progress can make I difficult to keep the same motivation and idealism or passion that you may have once had for a cause (Novogratz, 2020). This is why diversity, and expansion can be so valuable to an organization or progress. Fresh eyes or fresh perspectives can also regenerate some of that faith that the cause we are working for or towards still matters, that we are making a difference, and that even if the problem is never solved permanently, we may not be everything to everyone, but we ca...
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Values are the foundation of our leadership

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  Every person is made up of different choices and beliefs. The way we lead and whom we follow are based highly within our values. This is not to say that we can lose sight of our values or follow those who do not align with what we believe is our authentic self. Our values can also help us lead and follow, not with fear , but with belief that we are taking steps towards a future aligning with what we feel is right. Our values are shaped by our experiences, by those we hold in admiration, by those we follow and can sometimes form without even realizing it. When I think of values and how they are formed, I think of my niece. She is ten and though there are experiences she has not witnessed firsthand; it is in the moments that her values are seeming to be questioned that I realize she is learning and leading by example. To say that values shape our decisions and the way we lead, though true, is not absolute and is not always indicative of positive experience. For instance, if someo...
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We cannot be saved from change, nor should we want to be

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  What? The market and American government are not much different than one another. Both seek establish a narrative of those who will benefit and those who won't, albeit financial, social or political gains on the table. In working in a not-for-profit organization, a continuous challenge being faced is utilizing the market, funding opportunities, and balancing ensuring opportunities for those who do not have the means to afford them on their own. The financial models that persevere often only serve a specific subsection of the community; Like the education system in Pakistan, so often a system will in need of repair, but those who need it the most are unable to move towards that progress alone (Novogratz, 2020). Like many things, this problem is institutionally two-fold: you need funding to make progress, but you need affordable options to serve the communities in full. But how do you convince people to invest in an idea that doesn’t directly benefit them? I think of this like t...
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Leading across self-concepts

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  If you were to have asked me as a child whether I lived in individualistic or collective society, I would not have hesitated to guess collective. I would have guessed wrong. The United States is a prime example of an individualist culture . Individualistic cultures promote an independent self-concept, whereas collective cultures promote interdependency in the like (Bhawuk & Munusamy, 2010). Idiocentric individuals, who practice more individualistic approaches, and allocentric individuals, who practice more collective approaches can be found in cultures practicing in both styles. Seeing multiple generations of my family so interconnected, interdependent on one another, I would never have considered that we were a part of an individualistic culture. Later in life, outside of siblings, parents, spouses, etc., I started to feel that same interconnectedness to others, strangers. To the best of my ability, my self-identified self-concept would be more so an allocentric. Thinking ba...
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How far do gender differences go? How far can courage take us?

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       What?  In leadership, courage can be a catalyst for moving forward and creating space for global change. Similar to how leadership does not equal power, courage does not equal fearless (Novogratz, 2020). Courage is what allowed Novogratz to initialize her entrepreneurial experiences, with encouragement from her parents who believed she could do anything; Their belief in her and her siblings funneled into her having that same faith in herself (Novogratz, 2020). Being afraid does not make us small, it is not believing we can move towards our goals despite our fear that can keep us small (Novogratz, 2020). Novogratz writes about her uncomfortable and unsafe experience with a man whom she babysat for and how this experience, though her parents taught her to be courageous, allowed her lack of faith in herself to drive her actions and decisions. So What? While parents or adults in our lives may show us how to and encourage us to utilize our courage, there may...
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Cultural Values: How can I make sure I lead across culture bounds

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 What?      Cultural differences can be divisive. They are engrained in the way we move through life: beliefs, symbols, practices, and values. They can be a catalyst for conflict and can call for needing to manage expectations. In certain settings, we will experience that matches the culture to which we are accustomed. Whereas, as we gain experience, we may also have opportunities to develop an understanding of cultures different than ours. Given that people may take their culture for granted (Shwartz), it also seems that we don't even recognize the pillars of our culture until we encounter something different. Institutions functions based on these pillars, orientations, of cultural value (Shwartz). Cultures will fall on one side of a value orientation and gives guidance on how cultures function and people move through their societies. So What?      Culture does not define us, but it does impact us. Cultural values can influence our perception, our act...
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