What does it mean to be a leader? I was
informed that leaders in aboriginal community
in Canada were originally women. But when
the men from Europe came to Canada, they
only wanted to only recognize men as leaders.
Having to accept the leadership in terms
defined by men, so many women had lost
the right to lead. Today, we have to ask
ourselves that in our quest for equal
participation in power and decision making
role, are women still adopting men’s
way to be leaders? Are we voting for women
candidate only if they have the leadership
quality of men? Are women felt that they
don’t have what it take because
they tried to live up to men’s leadership
quality?
If more women want to reclaim the right
to lead, we have to start by defining
leadership in our own way. Then we compete
against ourselves to live up to that ideal
by our own action. Yet, we should look
at leadership for what it is, not through
a rose color glass. There are prices we
have to pay to be leaders.
If you want to be a VISIONARY leader,
then you must be able to anticipate challenges
ahead of other people. You should be able
to introduce preventive measures in a
timely manner. But if you are truly ahead
of your time, chances are many people
would not yet understand the challenges
and issues that you are trying to address.
Until those challenges become apparent,
you may be ridiculed and misunderstood.
If you want to be a VICTORIOUS leader,
then you must learn to conquer defeat.
Victory is achieved by those who persevere
despite setbacks, but rarely by those
who never experience setbacks. When you
face a tough situation, count your blessings
from those who continue to stand by you.
You must realize that while everyone wants
to be on the winning side, not everyone
dares to engage in a dangerous battle.
So you have to find enough strength to
forgive those who promise to support you
by their words but did not follow through
by their deeds.
If you want to be a leader who MAKES
A DIFFERENCE then you have to be resourceful
even when you face limited resources.
Don’t use the lack of resources
as an excuse for non-performance. You
have to look for innovative ways to overcome
those limitations. And as the different
you make may not become apparent overnight,
you must be willing to defer instant gratification.
If you want to be a leader, find your
own path, get ready to take on the challenges
and start your pursuit. Dream an impossible
dream and make it come true!
On behalf of BPW International, I wish
our sister in Aboriginal community all
the success and look forward to develop
a stronger tie to promote more women to
take on leadership positions for decades
to come.
Chonchanok Viravan
BPW International President
24 July 2008
