Upholding the tradition of Christmas, on Wednesday, the 25th of December I went to St Gertrude’s Parish to attend mass. The Parish priest began the sermon with a shared anecdote from a royal lineage. If my memory is right, Princess Alice of Battenberg asked Prince Philip to find a faith. In response to this, the latter replied that it was nothing significant. To which reckless statement, the Princess responded that it was everything. He laid emphasis on ‘Find a Faith’ a few times compelling me to reflect on so many issues under the sky that could have been resolved with a little faith.
In a world ravaged by external, inner or abstract conflicts, conflict resolution skills become inevitable. While there is greater emphasis on leadership skills for aspiring leaders, the ones complacent in leadership positions expect their subordinates to follow their orders or commands without any questions. They have displayed tendencies to resist challenging behavior of any sort. They prefer to place stress on the ‘authority’ status rather than take a genuine interest in their colleagues or staff or team and tend to focus on the subordinates’ reaction rather than the action that had precipitated such a reaction. If every individual had to lay prostrate before their leaders, worship the latter as celestial beings and send their thinking capacities on a walkabout, then any Tom, Dick or Harry could become the head of a team or an institution without any skills. The complacent leaders conveniently forget that conflict is inevitable and the only thing they can control is how they react to it and how they resolve it satisfactorily either through mediation, compromise or discussions.
The secret weapon of powerful leaders to deal with conflicts is Faith. Many sources would define this simple word ‘Faith’ which is derived from Latin ‘fides’ and old French ‘feid’, as confidence or trust in a person, thing or concept or in a religion. I am not talking about the power bestowed by the spirit of God to enter God’s kingdom. Faith is a choice. A choice made by an individual to believe; to believe in oneself and to be able to support those who believe in him/her. Faith has been the basis for motivational or inspirational talks, music, literature and art. It is a human experience which provides inner strength, the quality of selflessness, the ability to comprehend the needs of the disadvantaged, a meaningful purpose in life and a shield against fear, stress or anxiety to deserving individuals. This Christmas onwards I resolve to find faith in myself and be a source of strength to others. What about you? Merry Xmas to all.
A Writer's Exposé 