Wanted: Heroes. Must be able to change the World
Every now and a truth hits me between the eyeballs.
It’s a bit like being hit by a Mack truck – except that instead of crashing to the ground in physical pain, I become completely overwhelmed by emotion. Tears well up, my chest tightens… I enter a different dimension – it’s kind of hard to explain. And at the time, I usually can’t. It is only with the wisdom of hindsight that I realise that what I experienced was the uncovering of a deep, personal truth – something that is about to change my life profoundly, if I choose to act on it.
One particular time, (seemingly a lifetime ago, but in reality, less than 3 years), I was at a leadership course with work and we were asked to give a short presentation about a leader we admired – in other words, for us, the aspiring leaders of the company – our hero. I’ve never been big into heroes (they feel too much “out there”, and I’m a bit too egalitarian for that), but there has always been one person that fitted the “hero bill” for me. I even posted a picture of this person up on my desk! That person was Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop.
On this particular day, I had to stand up in front of my colleagues (who after a total of 9 days of residential training I was getting to know pretty well) and talk about Anita Roddick. It should have been a cinch. Instead – Mack Truck moment! Even to write about her, in preparation for our mini-presentation, brought floods of tears. And I had no idea why – then.
Now it all makes sense.
Recently I read two books that on the surface were vastly different. The first – At Home by Bill Bryson, is a history of home-life in the western world, focusing in particular on the changes brought about by the industrial revolution. It’s an incredibly interesting and enjoyable read, full of anecdotes and eccentric characters.
The second is Half the Sky by reporters, Nicholas D Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn, which tells real-life stories of women’s struggles in the developing world. The stories are graphic and heart wrenching. Reading it was hard work for someone who usually takes the stance, “I know it exists, I care, but I don’t want to look”, wherever violence is concerned. Except that I was so startled by the strength and heroism of some of these women, against insurmountable odds, that I could not help but continue.
What struck me though is the incredible parallel of circumstances. 150-180 years ago, the western world was the developing world. Slavery, poverty, disease, illiteracy and the treatment of women as second-class citizens were just as prevalent. Since then, we have discovered the solutions (and related consequences e.g. environmental destruction) to these problems – industrialisation, modern medicine, education, equal rights, science and technology. Sure, in our world women may still be paid less than men, but they can go to school, vote, choose how many children they have and live relatively comfortably. As Australians we are lucky enough to have access to a reasonable level of health care for all. We know how to fix our environmental problems (whether we choose to implement the solutions is a whole other issue). We can produce enough food for everyone.
In short, we already have the answers.
What the world needs now is more heroes – those people, who like Anita, are willing to stand up and say, “NO this is not good enough. What can I do to change this?”
What happened on that fateful day was that I connected with a dream – a BIG, HAIRY AUDACIOUS dream! That dream… To build on Anita’s legacy and build a business that is environmentally and socially responsible AND turns a decent profit; that takes a stance on issues such as education for girls and the environment AND makes some pretty nice products that people like to use; that trusts that ordinary people THINK, and want to do the right thing; to completely rewrite the corporate manual, and create a whole new business model, just right for a new world order. She did it, why can’t I?
Admittedly, comparing my little biz to The Body Shop seems a bit ambitious at moment (and if you saw my dining table based manufacturing plant last week, you’d think it was a LOT ambitious!)
But I have faith in me.
What I don’t have is the million dollars to speed up the whole process. Instead, I’ll just have to make do and build slowly; carefully; thoughtfully – in just the same way as others have before me, including Anita.
While we might not all rise to the multinational corporation heights of Anita, across the world, we entrepreneurs – whether from the poorest neighbourhoods of the third world, making the most of our micro-loans, or starting out from our dining tables in our comfortable suburban homes – are each heroes in our own rights. We’ve made the decision to break free of the rat race and create our own destinies. More importantly, we’re finding our own ways to utilise the knowledge built over the past 150 years or so to help solve the problems of the world.
So while I want it all NOW, it’s probably for the best that I learn from these heroes, and like Anita and millions of other business owners before me, take one little baby step at a time.
Unless you’re happy to donate a million dollars, of course!
