This one is probably the last from the Manager series. But before that let me tell you that this week was tough, emotionally draining. There are days when you can’t articulate your thoughts so well. One of those days for me. And when this happens, I prefer the old ways of gaining knowledge – reading. And, yes of course solitude.
The other day a good friend was describing me as “an introvert who prefers conversations only with people he likes and topics where there is some wisdom. No gossip”.
Well yeah, i don’t completely deny that and yes some gossip is fine by me. 😀
But I think the two easiest ways to gain wisdom are – picking a book or meeting someone interesting.
And now that I’m tagged as an introvert, I decided to live by it. So, I picked a book named Awareness written by Anthony De Mello, an Indian spiritual Jesuit and psychotherapist. And not just did I pick a book full of wisdom but also came across a fascinating person in the form of ‘Tony’ De Mello. There’s a beautiful story he shares where he explains to — I guess — one of his students that how he had given up trying to help. He used to try to help but it never worked very well, he says.
To which the student asks “but, what do you do then? Isn’t helping what you are doing?”
What he said to this has been in my mind ever since:
“I just show up and rain.”
He quotes an Arab proverb “The nature of the rain is the same, but it makes thorns grow in the marshes and flowers in the gardens “.
The rain rains. Doesn’t matter what the situation or circumstance, if it needs to rain it rains. Doesn’t matter where it lands.
If it lands on a fertile soil, things will grow. If it lands on dry soil, it may become fertile for future growth.
And if it falls on the rock, well then it just falls.
It’s the nature of the rain to fall without caring about what we think.
That I thought is a job of a manager, a leader. To show up, to rain, when needed. If the team is like a fertile soil, it will nourish and grow. If the team isn’t ready but has the potential, then it will prepare itself for future growth. And well if the team is like a rock, the rain (manager) will mean nothing.
Remember, it’s a two-way street.
If you are a manager/leader, remember to rain when needed. But it’s important for us to know how much to rain or we can cause devastation (flood).
If you are a team member, know what you are and choose what you want to be – ready to get nourished by the rain, or being open to prepare yourself to embrace rain for future growth or be a rock and let the rain just drench you.
The choice is simple!
