I was taking a photograph the other day of a most beautiful sunset. Looking at the photo afterwards, I was thinking that a sunset or sunrise happens every day. A sunset is consistent, and because it happens every day it is also predictable. It provides us with some kind of security. What does this mean in our lives?
We never really think about it, but a sunset or a sunrise is probably the only certainty we have in our lives. It is just always there every day without being asked to do so, and without fail. There is some kind of security in it, even if we do not realize it. This is why we love witnessing the beauty of a sunset and the thought that it will not happen again tomorrow, never even cross our mind.
As we know, the world around our daily lives is anything but consistent and predictable. With global media in our faces the world has shrunk and we are constantly bombarded with information, whether we need it or not.
Is it therefore possible to experience this security that a sunset gives, even in this unpredictable world?
We are unable to control all those things that happen to us every day, the unexpected and the unpredictable. The one thing we do control is our thought process – how we react and respond to everything that is happening around us. This is where we create our own security.
- Consistency of thought – we know our world is unpredictable, we accept this and understand it and we concentrate our thoughts in things we can control.
- Predictability of action – because our thought process is consistent we understand that our actions will be a result of our thought process. We will not try and do things we know we have no control over.
- Security in ourselves – consistency of thought and resultant predictability of action provides us with security that we are in control of ourselves
We can completely ground ourselves by using those experiences we get from witnessing a beautiful sunset. Consistency and predictability in our thought processes creates security within us.
Is it not also true that key components of quality Leadership consist of consistency and predictability, and that in turns provides security?