27 May 2008
Edgewater, NJ
Much has happened in the past year since my last blog entry. My decision to pursue graduate studies in Georgetown University Law Center this 2007-2008 has taken me on a journey that has changed both my professional and personal life in so many ways. I am still trying to make sense of all the changes in my life, but suffice it to say, things are at least stable enough for me to start blogging again.
So many insights over this past year that I don't know where to begin. But for now, I'm happy to upload my paper on Heroic Leadership which was presented during the Women's Leadership and Empowerment Conference held in Bangkok, Thailand last June 2007 and was published in the Journal of Global Management Research in December 2007. Just click on the title, or go to http://www.gmrjournal.com/issues.asp.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Present-day warriors
Something that my mentor, Prof. Myrna S. Feliciano, sent me sometime ago:
"Of what real value is this materialistic progress of which we boast, if we do not know how to live? If falsehoold and lying and expediency are permissible, then our moral core is softening and our peril is greed indeed.
"Our task is not to find excuses,
but to repair the broken,
to strengthen the weak,
to win back the wavering,
to carry forward the banner of clean and decent living.
"We are the warriors of our day, the realistic fighters in an everlasting war against a retreat from moral law.
"In such a war, there can be no compromise, for either we meet the onslaught of unrighteous living with potent and powerful weapons, or we leave a legacy of waste."
- George Sokolsky
"Of what real value is this materialistic progress of which we boast, if we do not know how to live? If falsehoold and lying and expediency are permissible, then our moral core is softening and our peril is greed indeed.
"Our task is not to find excuses,
but to repair the broken,
to strengthen the weak,
to win back the wavering,
to carry forward the banner of clean and decent living.
"We are the warriors of our day, the realistic fighters in an everlasting war against a retreat from moral law.
"In such a war, there can be no compromise, for either we meet the onslaught of unrighteous living with potent and powerful weapons, or we leave a legacy of waste."
- George Sokolsky
Of courage and integrity
Someone texted me this the other day:
"The highest courage is to dare be yourself in the face of adversity. Choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over popularity. These are the choices that measure our life. Travel the path of integrity without looking back for there is never a wrong time to do the right thing."
"The highest courage is to dare be yourself in the face of adversity. Choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over popularity. These are the choices that measure our life. Travel the path of integrity without looking back for there is never a wrong time to do the right thing."
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Wanted: Heroic Leaders
The Philippines is at a critical juncture in its history. Over the past two decades, we have found ourselves being orphaned by a government that has increasingly become indifferent to the needs of its people. We are ruled by purported “leaders” who are unable to distinguish between the most basic concepts of right and wrong, and public interest vs. personal profit.
With the Philippines’ current political, social, and economic situation, the need for genuine leadership and statesmanship has never been more urgent and compelling. Yet many of us feel that these are nowhere to be found. Or at least not in government or in politics. Many of our compatriots have been forced to leave the country for distant shores, in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Many more have lapsed into resignation, if not despondency and hopelessness.
At a time when we feel that society is morally bankrupt and our so-called leaders bereft of any integrity and principles, we long for heroes who will fight for us and defend us. Heroic leaders who will lead us out of poverty and despair.
Many of us think that because we’re not in power, and because the problems that we face as a nation are so big and we're so small, that there's "only so much" that we can do.
This is a myth which I think is being perpetuated to prevent us from realizing the tremendous potential waiting to be unleashed in each one of us. For the truth is, there is SO MUCH that each one of us can do. Philippine history tells us that it was the individual valor, courage, and bravery of each Filipino soldier, replicated by the tens and hundreds of thousands, that made it possible for us to live in freedom today. The lives of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Pope John Paul II, and Mother Teresa, for example, show us the impact that one person can make.
Heroism and leadership, then, are measured not by the scale of the opportunity that presents itself, but by the quality of our response to such an opportunity. To paraphrase Mother Teresa, there are no great acts, only small acts of great love.
Imagine how much change would be possible if all Filipinos were to realize that the power to chart the destiny of our country (and even the world) lies in our hands!
Many of our compatriots have already realized that, and are already doing what they can to move our country forward. No self-pity, no blaming or finger-pointing; they’re just forging ahead, doing their best, giving their best to this country. Gawad Kalinga, RockEd Philippines, Akbayan Citizens Action Party, Ang Kapatiran, Fr. Ed Panlilio, Jesse Robredo, Abang Mabulos – they give us hope that change is possible, because they are doing what they can, where they are, in their own way.
And that there are thousands, even millions more all over the country like them. Filipinos who dream of a proud, progressive, prosperous, and principled Philippines, and are already working to transform that dream into reality. All we need to do is find each other, get our act together, join hands, and together, pull our country up from the mud and into the stars.
It’s a heroic undertaking, and it demands nothing less than heroic leaders to take it on.
Small hearts and small minds need not apply.
Interested?
With the Philippines’ current political, social, and economic situation, the need for genuine leadership and statesmanship has never been more urgent and compelling. Yet many of us feel that these are nowhere to be found. Or at least not in government or in politics. Many of our compatriots have been forced to leave the country for distant shores, in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Many more have lapsed into resignation, if not despondency and hopelessness.
At a time when we feel that society is morally bankrupt and our so-called leaders bereft of any integrity and principles, we long for heroes who will fight for us and defend us. Heroic leaders who will lead us out of poverty and despair.
Many of us think that because we’re not in power, and because the problems that we face as a nation are so big and we're so small, that there's "only so much" that we can do.
This is a myth which I think is being perpetuated to prevent us from realizing the tremendous potential waiting to be unleashed in each one of us. For the truth is, there is SO MUCH that each one of us can do. Philippine history tells us that it was the individual valor, courage, and bravery of each Filipino soldier, replicated by the tens and hundreds of thousands, that made it possible for us to live in freedom today. The lives of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Pope John Paul II, and Mother Teresa, for example, show us the impact that one person can make.
Heroism and leadership, then, are measured not by the scale of the opportunity that presents itself, but by the quality of our response to such an opportunity. To paraphrase Mother Teresa, there are no great acts, only small acts of great love.
Imagine how much change would be possible if all Filipinos were to realize that the power to chart the destiny of our country (and even the world) lies in our hands!
Many of our compatriots have already realized that, and are already doing what they can to move our country forward. No self-pity, no blaming or finger-pointing; they’re just forging ahead, doing their best, giving their best to this country. Gawad Kalinga, RockEd Philippines, Akbayan Citizens Action Party, Ang Kapatiran, Fr. Ed Panlilio, Jesse Robredo, Abang Mabulos – they give us hope that change is possible, because they are doing what they can, where they are, in their own way.
And that there are thousands, even millions more all over the country like them. Filipinos who dream of a proud, progressive, prosperous, and principled Philippines, and are already working to transform that dream into reality. All we need to do is find each other, get our act together, join hands, and together, pull our country up from the mud and into the stars.
It’s a heroic undertaking, and it demands nothing less than heroic leaders to take it on.
Small hearts and small minds need not apply.
Interested?
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