I have been watching with great interest the reactions of people
around me, the questions that are being asked and some of the
decisions being made. At first I wondered if it was the crisis
making people and businesses question the importance and relevance
of everything and start to cut out activities that were considered
non core expenditure. Then I wondered if it went deeper than that.
Is it a lack of understanding? A lack of vision? Or is it that our
sense of being part of a bigger whole has shrunk and our focus has
become more narrow, individualistic and material?
Wide or narrow focus
The last few years I have had the pleasure of interacting with a
number of people from various walks of life who have opened their
hearts, minds and souls to help people who have less than them. I
have met people who believe that the only way forward is together,
that we are a part of one big whole and the actions we take not
only impact our own lives but the lives of many. Yet I have come
across so many more people who don't want to know or see anything
beyond their own needs and beliefs. As I see more of the latter
than the former, a number of questions come to mind.
We buy houses but are we creating homes?
We have cars but are we enjoying the ride?
Do we own possessions or do they own us?
Dreams and Dollars
I was talking to a teacher in one of our primary schools who
said she would love to go and volunteer in Cambodia but felt like
she couldn't. She was trapped in a role that had stopped being a
passion for her and that did not meet the needs of the life stage
she was at, but because she had financial commitments and bills to
pay she had to hold on to her job.
It made me wonder what kind of impact she would have on her
students. Would she continue to inspire them to learn and explore
and open the gates of knowledge for them? Or would she help educate
a generation of children who would never be excited by the prospect
of learning and growing through experiences because all she did was
tick the boxes and deliver the bare minimum she had to? In a world
where people are losing their jobs in the thousands, many would
consider her to be doing the right thing…
Economic Crisis
Rising unemployment triggers many issues and the largest one is
probably a loss of income. How is it that a loss of income equates
to a loss of self, a loss of values and a loss of dignity?
I understand that costs need to be managed for business survival
but since when did people become costs? And what does the future
hold for us as a society if we consider people to be costs and
collateral damage rather than an investment and a hope for a better
tomorrow?
The economic crisis has us in its grip and many of us are
consumed by uncertainty and worry. This has narrowed down our
perspective and we are missing the forest for the trees. When you
are consumed by the question of survival, you never focus on
legacies.
What will be the impact of this narrowed vision? Will we be able
to see and dodge the next crisis, and the next and the next? Will
we be able to see sufficiently far down the track to head off other
issues and crises before they attain critical mass?
Sustainable
If individuals, communities and businesses don't engage with
each other and with people who are beyond their sphere of influence
and if people don't raise their concerns and voices because it is
easier to go with the flow and not create ripples that may impact
their jobs, lifestyles and the status quo, are we all acting
responsibly for our future and our children's futures?
This made me think about what are the messages we are sending
out as businesses, as professionals and as parents. We are all
talking about environmental sustainability and social
sustainability yet the society we live in is one of consumption
with a general sense of entitlement. What happens when it is all
consumed? What are the deposits we are making today to invest in
our futures? What are the legacies we wish to leave behind?
As professionals we set short term and long term goals and have
a huge focus on where we want to be professionally. Can we do any
less for our communities and our environment?
Legacies
I'll leave you with a couple of things to think about.
What do you want your legacy to the world to be? We will live
this lifetime only once. We will go down this track only one time.
What would you like to leave behind you as you pass? As William
Penn once said,
I expect to pass through life but once. If,
therefore, there be any kindness I can show, or any good thing I
can do for any fellow being, let me do it now... as I shall not
pass this way again
.
WWF (World Wildlife Fund) are campaigning to save the Hector and
Maui Dolphins which are on the verge of extinction. Their call to
action - We only get this chance once. Once they are extinct they
are gone. How apt!
Acknowledgement
Supriya is passionate about engagement particularly with the
community and developing and using programmes strategically to
engage and involve internal and external stakeholders to achieve
objectives and goals for mutual benefit.
She also loves to write and has written for websites, magazines
and newspapers both in New Zealand and India. She believes all of
us have something to give and a couple of her favourite words are
'possibilities' and 'potential'. She would love to hear from you
and is available on email.