What is Success?

To laugh often and much;
To win the respect of intelligent people
And the affection of children;
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;
To appreciate beauty;
To fine the best in others;
To leave the world a bit better, whether by
A healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition;
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived;

This is to have succeeded.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I think one of the moving elements in our environment that we need to work on the most, aside from academic excellence, is leadership. In some way, we all affect each other and inevitably conspire to the development of each other's future. Our society and environment cannot be without leaders. These people take many different forms but they are the people who influence others, without having to compel them, to act and perform to their utmost potential. The bearings of society depend on these leaders for a progressive future. Without these people, I doubt we could see a vision of optimism on the present state of our world and even more see the future as a brighter world to live in.

I believe that there are a handful of potential leaders in our environment. Montessorians are taught to beindependent and I believe tht those who take their studies seriously and stick to their true and good convictions know the true meaning of being independent. There is always room for change---for progressive and positive change. We still have students who have to be pushed forward to move and I believe those who see this also work to let those students mobilize themselves. It's always sad to see a member of a group being left behind due to incapacity. It happens, maybe not to all but to a number of people.

There is much to look after when you are a leader. You have to keep in mind not only the welfare of yourself but or your peers, too. As a leader, you and your peers must work together for a goal. Let's say, for instance, the leader is linked to each and every one of his followers physically in a human ring. Now, if all the people who are in the link move to their desired area, you can imagine how hard everyone will be pulling on each other to get to his own place. The result? One gigantic knot of painful limbs and sore egoes. The group must work together to achieve a goal one step at a time. A great group would work together on each other's goals and at the same time be able to walk through the path obtaining new knowledge for thmselve as well.

no one ever said that being a leader would be easy. It's not a job everyone would really take on. There is always that active process wherein everyone must move or get left behind. There will always be risks no matter what happens. Undertakings are always part of every leader's tasks. From these undertakings, a leader must learn and incorporate his own learning in his member's thinking.

There is what we call the Pareto Principle that was introduced to me by a great inspirational writer and speaker named Dr. John C. Maxwell. This simply states that 20% of your priorities will give you 80% of your production if you spend time, energy, money, and personnel on the top 20% of your priorities. The ability of a leader to prioritize and actually follow all other priorities helps make a successful leader. But there is also a downfall to priorities that we must remember---too much of it keeps us from working to achieve other important goals. Learn to maximize and choose your priorities. A lot of students always give lip service but never work on their commitments becuase they think that later on they can hust work on it. Actually, that's a paradigm that most students fall for since it can be asserted that a lot of students still cram later on.

The most important ingredients in being a leader is INTEGRITY. Integrity unites the leader and the follower through trust, influence, values, and reputation. As William Shakespere wrote in Hamlet,
"This above all to thine own self be true
And it shall follow like the night
the day,
Thou canst not then be fale to any man."

In closing, I would like to share with you an excerpt from a handbook on leadership that I received in one of the seminars I attended.
Few motivational talks have influenced or inspired as many people as the famous Victorian lecture what was known as “Acres of Diamonds”. Russell H. Conwell, a former newspaper correspondent and minister, delivered his speech more than six thousand times between 1877 and 1925. When it was published it became an immediate best seller and a classic in inspirational lecture.
The story Conwell told in his lecture had an enormous appeal. It recounted the life of a Persian farmer named Ali Hafed who sold his farm and left his family to travel the world in search of wealth. He looked everywhere but he could not find the diamonds he lusted after. Finally, alone and in despair as a homeless pauper, he ended his own life. His search for riches had consumed him. In the meantime, the man who bought the land from Ali was grateful for every blade of grass that was now his and lavished love and hard work on his farm. At night, surrounded by his family and eating the fruits of his labor, he was a contented man. Finally, one day he made a remarkable discovery. In the backyard that Ali Hafed had abandoned was a diamond mine--- literally an acre of diamonds. The simple farmer became wealthy beyond his wildest dreams.
Conwell used this parable to illustrate an extraordinary and wonderful message: within each lies a wellspring of abundance and the seeds of opportunity.

Remember, there is no perfect leader (only GOD is perfect). Only a leader in search for perfection exists and sometimes that does not always produce a favorable outcome. Work for peace and with peace. Nothing beats a leader who is able to influence his followers to be the people of God. There is much that is expected from us because we carry on our shoulders the burdens, trials, and success of the future. It is hoped that as Montessorians and children of God, we take up arms against our demons and begin to take initiative. One spark is all that it takes to light up the room. Let this spark grow to become the light of the world and the light for a better mankind.

Where is your acre of diamonds? Have you found it yet? I hope you do and in doing so become better leaders of tomorrow. We need more of you great leaders in our community and most especially in our society. Let us all work together for a brighter and peaceful world. It’s our home and our future.

*No Stress. Life is Good.*