Whether it is a mundane development within a family, an event or celebration planned by friends or an emergency in a public arena, all of us have experienced how quickly one individual will step forward, take charge and make quick, crucial decisions that can make a huge difference. Invariably this individual is a leader in his organisation, however small or big it might be. In my journalistic career spanning 47 years, I have interviewed at least a couple of hundred leaders from diverse fields like politics, business and industry, sports, science and education, banking and finance, entertainment and various professions like medicine, law, and so on.
One of the questions I’ve posed to most of these luminaries is their definition of leadership. After all, they’ve reached the pinnacle, so, in their opinion, what were the qualities that make a fine leader. The answers they have given have defined them as human beings. A leadership position invariably brings power along with it; how the individual handles that power… with a flourish and arrogance or with grace and humility, defines that person and the route to success or disaster, or simply mediocrity, that particular organisation will take. Recently an attribute of leadership I read about described how that particular person talked about handling difficult or tricky moments and situations. Asked how he faced the various challenges that his leadership position laid bare, he said that he did not look at those situations as challenges, but rather as opportunities he was fortunate enough to get. He looked at those as opportunities to really achieve something. This really set me thinking… challenge is something daunting, and even fearsome, but opportunity sounds much more positive and a chance to achieve a memorable objective.
Of course there are all kinds of leaders; but those who truly make an impact are the ones who embrace the opportunity to innovate something that will make a difference to many, many lives. These are leaders with responsibility and a social consciousness… one example that comes to mind is of the feisty woman Namita Banka, who left a promising career as a jewellery designer to advance the cause of bio-toilets. Indian Railways, which faced a huge problem of human waste from its toilets corroding tracks, first started using bio-toilets designed and developed in partnership with the DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation). But this huge organisation still needed someone to manufacture or liaise with manufacturers. In 2012, Namita founded Banka Bioloo, a company dedicated to innovative sanitary solutions, and apart from Indian Railways, she has been working very hard to put up bio-toilets in remote and rural areas, where they are most needed. With an educational background in environmental science, she firmly believes that every person deserves to have a clean and sustainable toilet.
Coming back to leadership, we have a new leader at the helm of RI — President Francesco Arezzo. Even though he has had a shorter landing time due to the sudden resignation of Mario de Camargo, the affable leader is sending all the right signals that he will lead Rotary with passion, dedication and efficiency. We wish him all the very best.
Rasheeda Bhagat