Leadership is the bigger call to serve others

Posted on May 13, 2019 by Amaia Sotes Linares-Rivas, One of Thousands of Leadership Coaches on Noomii.

When I arrived at the entrance of the laid back, hipster-like “airbnb” house in Venice Beach, Los Angeles, I wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary – it wasn’t a mansion with a swimming pool that we see in the movies. I was anticipating a trendy LA house, close to the beach, and a good base from which to explore the area. Nothing more. I could not have been more mistaken! The extraordinary nature of this house came in the form of post-it stickers on a wall. Words that, for me, opened the door to a new universe, a new reality, and made me reflect on the impact that we all make without even knowing.

When I entered, my attention was caught by the impactful vision scribbled across the walls – fresh futuristic ideas and dreams in flashy pink, orange and green papers stuck to the kitchen windows, underneath a white timeline expanding until 2030 – written directly on the window glass. I could sense a creative and innovative energy in every corner, and my curiosity was awoken by the smell of pioneering ideas, hidden in between philosophy, exquisite literature, poetry and cook books. A pair of futuristic, virtual reality “oculus rift” glasses lay on the kitchen table and something told me they were an essential part of the puzzle.

This place started to feel very stimulating. What was this? Who lived here? What were they working towards? What did all these acronyms (AI, VR1, VR2, etc.) on the post-its mean? The world described by Yuval Noah Harari in his latest book Homo Deus came to mind and helped me decode some of those (originally) abstract ideas on the window. I started to make some sense out of it. More questions emerged: Were the people here entrepreneurs? If so, what were they working on? How? Were they real architects of the future? Like the Steve Jobs of 2017 still waiting to be discovered? My brain kept on engaging with the stimuli all my senses were feeding me with. More questions. How will virtual reality and artificial intelligence change our understanding of the world and of ourselves? What will be its impact on human relationships? I felt so excited and curious trying to figure it all out, that exploring Hollywood Boulevard or Santa Monica Peer seemed meaningless adventures in comparison to decoding the technological revolution that someone was cooking in that kitchen. My attention was powerfully drawn towards the fascinating possibilities that those simple post-its implied… a reality in the making. I could smell my future, our future, cooking underneath that roof. It felt as if those walls were talking to me. Whispering the secrets of what awaits the humankind, with all the amazing possibilities and philosophical implications of what it means to be human.

Our time to leave arrived, and so we left behind that powerful universe inside four walls, without getting to know the author of the notes. It is a strange feeling to immerse yourself in the private world of a stranger. I have been to many “airbnb” houses before, but never have I left a house with such a feeling before – as if I was taking some intrepid thoughts hungry for adventures with me. Like independent ideas with their own life, which had decided to jump from fancy acronyms on a window, into my backpack, without asking for any permission!

As we continued travelling north, on our way to Alaska, I noticed that this experience had ignited my curiosity about our technological future, making me more aware and curious about where we are going as species. But more than that, witnessing first-hand the journey of this inspiring man, from his dreams and visions to what he is effectively creating in the world, how he and his team are shaping our collective future, made me realise once again how authentic and serving leadership has the power not only to change the world, but also to inspire others beyond our intention.

This is a story of someone following his calling, daring to try and fail while enjoying the ride, focused on giving rather than taking, on learning rather than teaching, on questioning rather than stating. Someone courageous, who is pioneering change with his incredibly fast-growing start-up, next to giants like Facebook, Google and Apple. I researched more about the story of the person behind the notes and discovered a pioneer in the world of virtual reality and a courageous and inspiring leader. For the sake of his privacy, I will not mention the name of the start-up he leads, or his exact story. But I realise that his name does not really add anything to the story. His acts do. And that is exactly the point.

What I want to tell you with this is that leadership has a voice on its own. It speaks loud and clear. Maybe through post-its on a wall – like in this case. Maybe through pictures, smiles, random acts of courage or kindness anywhere, or word-to-mouth story-tales from another place and time. It is bigger than leaders themselves, multiplying the impact we create in the world far beyond our direct sphere of action. Long after we are gone. Because leadership is not about ourselves and our selfish desires and interests. It is about the bigger call to serve others; to have the courage to offer our passion, skills, knowledge, visions, values and purpose to improve the world we live in.

I love the Buddhist saying that points towards what I am trying to explain: how we do anything is how we do everything. Because we have no control over what will come following our actions. We can only pay attention to our seemingly insignificant day-to-day behaviour, and become more aware of our impact.

My questions to you today may help you to reflect on your own leadership and how we are shaping our world every minute, right here right now:

- What am I choosing to give to the world?

- What’s the intention that lies behind my actions?

- What’s the impact that I have on others? (In my office, at home, in social media, on the train, bus etc?)

To the pioneers, the dreamers and the courageous givers! Happy exploring!