readings 9/7/2011

Sheryl Sandberg won’t ever really mean anything to me.  I can admit that. Does that make me sexist?  I hope not.  Do I admire her and respect her as a person and what she’s doing?  Absolutely.    The great majority of my leadership experiences are the result of the support and loyalty of women.  You know, mothers, daughters, sisters, wives, and mothers.    When asked about a leader and actions this person took to lead me, I named a woman.  Wiki lists Sandberg’s accomplishments as working with Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, holding a senior position at Google, meeting Mark Zuckerberg at a party, being listed in the top 20 of the “50 most powerful women in business”.  I come from a matriarchal culture and family, you’d be hard pressed to find me saying that I don’t love and appreciate women.

When I came across the man in Australia who would bring potential suicide victims in for tea or the war veteran  who organizes ‘Buddy Bowl’ to help soldiers cope with combat stress and fatigue I thought “who does that?”  It could be because Don Rithcie knows what it feels like to be lonely or because Nico Marcolongo knows what it feels like to be un appreciated or ignored., beyond conventional medicine.  I know women in the flesh- wives, mothers; who have felt like this- un appreciated, ignored, lonely.  That means a lot more to me.  Yes I love the leadership and initiative because it fully encompasses service.