LEADING BY EXAMPLE – A BUDDHIST
APPROACH IN LEADERSHIP AND ETHICS.
In 600 B.C., Prince Siddhartha left his prestige, glorified and loyal life in a
quest to search for the answer to ease human suffering. At the end of his
six-year-quest and after 49 days of meditation under the Bodhi tree, he
reached enlightenment at the age of 35. Buddhism has been flourishing for 2600
years. His teachings are based on the foundation of wisdom and compassion
through his life experience. Leading by example is just one invaluable lesson
the Buddha taught us. “Leading by example” is based upon our mindful thought,
speech, and actions in our daily life. His teachings have reached and
transformed innumerous people from all walks of life. The peaceful development
of humanity is in large part due to the enlightened teachings of Buddha.
Today, Buddhism can be a possible solution for the human crises. The following
seven steps can serve as a solution to many of today’s problems.
1. Establishing a Moral and Ethical Mindset. First we
need to have an idea, a vision in accordance with the spirit of Buddha's
right view. What contributes to an established moral and ethical mindset are
thought, speech and action that cultivate benefit for yourself and people
around you - not only in the present time, but also in the future. Venerable
Thich Minh Dat, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk in Stockton shares his mantra:
“If a doctor makes a mistake, he or she can only kill a single person, but if
an educator like us makes a mistake, we can kill a whole generation.”
(Thích, 2011). We ought to acknowledge that we are all educators because
sooner or later we are shown to be, husband or wife, brother or sister,
grandfather or grandmother, etc. We’ll have our own children and families.
Therefore, we need to educate our children and others the best we can.
Likewise, according to U.S. researchers, all good leaders need a moral mindset.
But, mindset alone is not enough; we ought to have a skillset. Beside the
valuable skills and knowledge, we also need to have a toolset. For example, a
good teacher is the one who takes his or her students wherever they are and
moves them forward in a positive direction. The mindset and skillset are vital,
but a toolset, such as school supplies in this case, is also important.
Therefore, any educator or leader must have the proper mindset, skillset, and
toolset to carry out his or her daily tasks effectively and efficiently.
2. Understanding and Articulating the Principle of Cause and Effect (Law of Karma): It can be said that everything we have today
is a result of our past actions, and that our present actions, words and
thoughts determine our future. Understanding this principle helps us to design
our own future and destiny. We are in control of our own emotions and well-being.
In other words, we are our own creator; our life is depending upon us. What we are today is the result of our actions in the past, and we can foresee my future
as they emerge from our actions today. As Buddha says: Orange seeds can only give oranges and
not apples. Therefore, the good or bad deeds (Karma) that we cultivate today
will dictate our future.
3. Think Globally and Act Locally – making a difference
around us first: Mahatma Gandhi once said: "Be the change that you
wish to see in the world." All these changes are rooted in one's individual first, then the change spreads to the family and finally to the
community and society as a whole. For instance: Trash is almost
everywhere. If we are aware that trash can be an eye-sore or pollution, we’ll
pick it up and make the environment around us more pleasant. So making changes
is just like picking or cleaning up that trash. Taking a closer look, in our
country most of the food travels thousands of miles before it reaches our
dinner tables. Going to our farmers or flea markets can make a difference. Likewise, if you are a Buddhist, you must have a solid foundation of
Compassion-Wisdom-Courage, or as a non-Buddhist we must utilize our knowledge,
attitude, and skills.
4. Mutual Respect and Mutual Benefit. Our tasks
and contributions should have the foundation of compassion, wisdom, valor and
perseverance to benefit all. We need to acknowledge that the successes of
others are also our own successes. The suffering or failure of others is also
our suffering and our failure. As a leader, we must see that everything in this
world is interconnected and intertwined. Things must co-exist to benefit all
communities and societies. This exists because that exists, that exits
because this exists or "when this exists, that exists; when this disappears,
that disappears" in the Extraordinary Emptiness Sutra. Our world is more
interdependent now than ever before. The earthquake and tsunami in Japan have
affected the world market and people’s lives all over the world. The halt in car
production in Japan has reduced the labor workforce in the USA. Furthermore, the
market in China or the earthquake in Turkey or the Arab Spring in Africa and
the Middle East are affecting our financial, political, and economical
well-being. Understanding that everything is interdependent with one
another helps us develop empathy, caring and mutual solidarity. Going further,
if all of us at all levels in our society put our own organizational and/or
community interests and benefits before our personal interests, then our
community and the country will flourish further.
5. Being Present to Each Tther - (Presencing as in the
Theory U). Vietnamese have a saying "A lonely swallow does not make the Spring." We need to be there for each other and water the positive
seeds of each other to make our world a better place to live. As Glasl,
Lemson and Scharmer said in the U theory: a) Individuals and teams
move through a whole system integrated planning process involving observation,
knowing and visualized decision-making; b) Innovation is integral; c) Policy
making (as the elaboration of conscious design principles for the organization)
is connected and integrated with the vision of what is to be brought about; d)
Relevant to both individual development and practice and organization
development and practice, and indeed explicitly connecting these; e) A social
technology that contributes to either or both of conflict resolution and social
engineering. Or, as Michael Fullan (2008) in the Change Secret Six put it: 1)
Love your employees; 2) Connect Peers with Purpose; 3) Capacity Building
Prevails; 4) Learning Is the Work; 5) Transparency Rules; 6) Systems
Learn. In other words, we must be there to show our support and our
commitment to change. Changes will not come about without our personal
commitment. Therefore, we must take a vow to fulfill our responsibility
and obligation both personally and professionally.
6. The Power of Unity or the Collaboration with other Organizations
for Sustainable Change.
Collaborations with other individuals and organizations that have the moral
foresight and the moral core values to change the livelihood of others. Any
great revolution needs unity. The changes in Buddhism also need that kind of
mutual solidarity. The power of collaboration and networking is needed to
create a better change for today and tomorrow.
7. Be a (Buddhist) Practitioner, Not Only a Learner.
In
his life, the Buddha’s most valuable and practical teachings are his own
lived-experience examples. His leadership style is leading by example in his
daily practices and actions. The Buddha’s leading by example serves as a guide
in our lives. His sutras are only a means and not a solution. Broadly, the sutras
are what he wanted to teach us, but the ultimate teaching is something we
already know. So please be a worthy practitioner. Thich Dao Quang, a young
Buddhist monk at Tam Bảo Temple in Louisiana, has often reminded us that each of
us has three lives: personal or private life, public life, and spiritual life.
We need to balance them all. In other words, when we take care of our
spiritual life, we will have all three lives. So, let us practice transforming our defiled mind into a pure one, transform our negative and destructive energy
into positive and constructive energy.
In conclusion, the development of technology and economics outpaces our
spiritual development. Each of us, a Buddha-to-be, whether ordained or
layperson, male or female, young or old, whether involved in the Vietnamese
Buddhist Youth Association or not, must learn and practice the art of
transforming oneself. Fix that clumsiness or those bad habits and improve your
well-being step-by-step. Furthermore, we need to be optimistic, enthusiastic,
and responsible in fulfilling our current roles and functions. A great leader,
as Covey pointed out, also practices four types of intelligences: mental
intelligence, physical intelligence, emotional intelligence and spiritual
intelligence. Finally, I use the words of his venerable Thich Minh Dat who gave
me his advice about becoming a transformative leader: He said: 1. Be
honest with yourself – benefit all, not just yourself, 2. Be honest with other
people, 3. Be honest and sincere with all the work that we propose.
References:
1. Covey, C. (2004). The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. New York:
Free Press
2. Fullan, M. (2008). The Six Secrets of Change: What the best leaders do to help
their organizations survive and thrive. (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass). p. 21.
3. Senge, P., et. al. (2005). Presence: Exploring Profound Change in People
Organizations, and Society. New York: Currency Doubleday.
4. Senge, P. et al. (2010), The Necessary Revolution: Working together to
create a sustainable world, New York: Broadway Books.
5. Thích, Đạt M. (2011). Góp Nhặt Lá Rơi. Stockton, CA. Quang Nghiêm Temple.
6. Thích, Hạnh N. (2007). The Art of Power. New York: HarperOne.
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