I am a firm believer we are all leaders; we lead every day in everything we do – but most importantly, we lead our lives as best as we can.
Ultimately, we will and should always look out for ourselves first before we are able to attend to others.
However, just because we put ourselves first doesn’t mean we shouldn’t consider others because, after all, we are not alone in this world.
Just like the leaders we are, we should be conscious of the consequences our actions or lack of actions will have on those around us – whether or not we know it.
It will be easy to dismiss that we have a hand in others’ outcomes – but if we were to look closely in our everyday lives, it becomes quite clear that we live in a world of chain reactions with a varying degree of outcomes because of our actions.
A rude message, disguised as a joke, posted under someone’s picture on social media, could be the very thing that pushes them over the edge – innocent but deadly.
Sometimes, I wonder if parents are aware of the amount of influence they have over their children; if they are aware that some of the things they say and do to their children have a huge impact on their everyday lives.
Over the years, I have heard parents make off-the-cuff comments to their children – and while they laughed it off and considered it a spur of the moment thing, it was interpreted differently by the child.
A simple ‘you don’t use your brain’ or ‘you are useless’ comment as he or she walks away sticks with the child longer than we actually realise.
Sometimes, we all just fail to consider others; we think our actions only affect us or affect others in a way we think is good for them. A prime example of this is speeding.
Time and time again, it has been proven that speeding is a major cause of fatal car accidents on our roads. Honestly, whoever is speeding is a very inconsiderate person because he/she is not just endangering himself/herself or their passengers but other road users who might have been following all the road rules.
Imagine, because of you being inconsiderate of the road rules, innocent people could end up paying for your actions.
We are all responsible for our lives and actions, so we should try as best as possible to go about our lives without having to disadvantage another person unnecessarily. That’s what leadership and responsibility are.
– Olavi Popyeinawa
Twitter: @olavipopyeinawa
Email: olavipopyeinawa@gmail.com