Ray Richards, our Do Something Different leader, argues that the lyrics from 'Mad World', the hit from 80's band Tears for Fears, reflects too many leaders today – going nowhere.
“All around me are familiar faces. Worn out places, worn out faces. Bright and early for the daily races. Going nowhere, going nowhere.”
Roland Orzabal, Tears for Fears.
All around us are. The health professionals who clearly do not practice what they preach. The Carers who care for others but not themselves. The Managers who send emails about work/life balance at 1am. The politicians who sit on select committees during the day and during the evening do exactly what they’ve been tasked with preventing. Going nowhere, going nowhere.
I’m not suggesting that the people who are unhealthy need to improve their health, that carers need to take care of themselves, that managers need to work less, that politicians need to stop sleeping with prostitutes and taking Class A drugs. It really is their choice.
But if going nowhere is unacceptable to them. If they want to go somewhere and they want the people they help to go somewhere, then changing what they do is essential. Change their job or make some small but powerful changes to what they do during the regular day. Either way they’ll reduce their levels of stress because they’ll be walking the talk, practicing what they preach. Their actions will be speaking louder than their words. Psychologically speaking, they’ll be more coherent.
Much has been, is being and will be written about leadership and what real leaders do. If we want to help people lead we have to help them lead themselves first.
