I have worked with different bosses for the past four years now and over this period of time, I have been privileged to work directly and/or indirectly with a lazy boss, slimy boss, calm boss, overactive boss, thrift boss, extravagant boss, brilliant boss and their characteristic go on and on…However, I have learnt diverse lessons form each one of these bosses
During my working relationship with each of the bosses, I attempt to study their life journey (I think this is partly to satisfy my curious nature) and based on my studies done so far, I have been able to make conscious decisions on some things I have vowed never to do and/or become and I have also committed myself to develop some critical habits that I have experienced in my interaction with these bosses.
In studying these men/women, I pay very careful attention to the successful ones and I adopt a present-to-past approach to carry out the study. In order to feed my curiosity but avoid nosing around unnecessarily, I gather details a little here, a little there from comments, personal conversations held with me, and hmmm, I also turn to my famous detective move by making use of one of the most effective research tool of the 21st century …GOOGLE! I run their names on google to see if can get lucky to know about the schools they attended, their marriage and relatives and past responsibilities.
While studying my bosses’ life journey, I have been consistently hit with one major truth, which is the fact that they have not always been what I, other associates, our contractors, clients and every other person are seeing in the present. They have passed through a phase in their lives where they were obscure and non-desirable in their form at the time and some of them have even been jobless and penniless graduates.
Those were the days when no one knew their names and people were not interested in knowing who they were. I have called this peculiar period of their lives the ‘Silent Years’.
From burying my head in motivational books and listening to preachers and motivational speakers, I have been able to deduce that the silent events in these Silent Years have to a very large extent formed what my successful bosses have become in this present. They held on to their conviction of their business and idea and waited patiently in hope until time and chance happened to them. Just like the saying of one wise man, nothing can stop a great idea whose time has come.
With this faith, I offer myself an encouragement in these silent years of mine, I may not be presently desired or sought by many, I may not have the right amount of money to hold family and friends spellbound, I may not be dining with the high and mighty of the world, but I will keep being consistent, working smarter at achieving my goals and I know that ONE day, time and chance will come my way, I will be ready for it and nothing will be able to stop me nor my ideas.
8 comments:
"However, I have learnt diverse lessons form each one of these bosses" is my fav part of your blog which I translate to seeing the best others have done and then using this to make your lot better. If only more people would join us. How high is high? Michelangelo wrote "The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it." I was doing my best without knowledge until I discovered The Deming System of Profound Knowledge which includes; Set an example, Be a good listener, but will not compromise and more. Life is too simple for it be a game (my/your chance), but learn the rules and win. Thank you for sharing knowledge.
Great post and interesting thoughts. Prompted me to think about this too.
I am not sure that to be "desired or sought by many" or to "have the right amount of money to hold family and friends spellbound" or to "be dining with the high and mighty of the world" is what we should aim at in life though. Those are extrinsic goals to me. Intrinsic goals like building friendships & relationships, personal intellectual development, personal spiritual development, and helping others do these too are what really make us happy.
So I think in the silent years these young men and women who are now successful bosses were simply following these intrinsic goals that enabled them to deal with people better, have an intellect suited to dealing with complexity and above all the understanding to bring the best work out of future employees.
Wow, this is very encouraging
titi, i quite identify with your thought line on this issue.
i had a recent and extensive ponder on this silent years recently and it lead me to an extentive study on the cedars of lebanon, when you diligently and innovatively work towards your goals in life,growth might seems slow and you might have to wait for some time, but it will eventually bring forth a grand result.
Brilliant, very brilliant, 'the silent years'.
"...a phase in their lives where they were obscure and non-desirable....the days when no one knew their names and people were not interested in knowing who they were..."
Pardon me but, I'll say brilliant yet again ('ve actually been to this blog but never read this particular article. Glad i did now).
These years...my dear is though people never knew they existed but, these bosses (the successful though) must have committed their time to learning the basis (1st principles) of their various professions. Oh yes, it must have been that period when their contemporaries landed those 'big paying jobs?', not as if they themselves weren't interested but, i guess they'd a GOAL, a VISION, it probably was difficult holding on but, apparently it paid off.
...just like you; me too in these my silent years, i would (according to one of my professors then) master a good technic, then, leave myself to inspiration.
So True
Permit me to repost this article on my blog. I so love it.
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