I recently spoke and presented at a Rotary function and during this presentation I conducted a “Wheel of Life” exercise. This exercise is one of the coaching tools I use with clients that allows them to review eight segments of their life and provides them the opportunity to improve through action.
After the presentation I had the pleasure to discuss this further with some of the members. As the segments of the wheel can be flexible and can be changed to suit, one of the members started asking me about the concept of “the Greater Good” and where that fit in the wheel. Many members of community clubs like Rotary have big hearts and have the concept of the greater good firmly placed in their mindset. But shared some concern for it.
I recently wrote about the need for better leadership in Australia, and recent events here have not allayed my fears. Sharing concerns of the rotary members allowed a new perspective as well.
Communities are made up of many who work for the greater good. We see volunteers investing their time for the benefits of the community in many areas. Many of them start their involvement coming into their 50’s while others increase their involvement. It is at that age that many start to see their corporate days closing out and they look to add significance and legacy to their lives.
The retirement age has been lifted to 70 here in Australia and is now being phased for the future. At the time of life that many look to ramp up their support for the community, we will see many still focused on working. The greater good misses out.
Additionally we have seen a resurgence of leaders talking up strong choices or tough budgets. I am not here to argue anything from a politic bent, but I must say that we have an entitlement mentality in our country and this extends to any leaders who believe they have a mandate to implement their policies and make their decisions. They govern for the entire country and have a responsibility to do so.
One thing I do know is that trust is missing within our political landscape. People are cynical and history has shown the lies and broken promises and this has bred this ever-increasing cynicism.
Great leaders don’t use “jackboots” tactics, as this seems to be the theme when our leaders talk about strong choices or tough decisions.
The greater good is perceived differently by segments of the community. And that is our greatest challenge. We have great people on all sides of politics and if we chose to work together, I am confident they can bring about a much greater governing environment for the greater good.
In the meantime we suffer the government of the day. And then we compound that by providing our check-safes in the senate, effectively reducing the ability of the government to govern. All of which allows the side-shows that we have seen in Australia gain political momentum and build approval ratings.
We have great people on all sides of politics. We just need to get them to work together to bring about a greater Australia. We have the people, do we have the will? We need egos to be left to the side as we drive greater involvement from all sides of politics and all sectors of community.
Do we have a leader that can stand up and bring about a way to lead for the greater good by involving all sectors of community.
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