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    The next generation

    Accountability Decision Making Rules Societal Wellbeing

    Three significant events happened this week.

    • On Tuesday, we proudly witnessed our son graduate from the University of Canterbury with a Bachelor of Engineering with Honours. Tim is a member of the cohort of 2011, the so-called earthquake cohort. He has endured the trials and tribulations of the Christchurch earthquakes, and we are convinced he and many others are stronger for the experience.
    • On Wednesday, ANZAC Day, we remembered those New Zealanders and Australians that fought for freedom in wars in faraway places. Many returned, but many young lives were lost. Lest we forget.
    • On Friday, we received a large package of information relating to our daughter's AFS student exchange. Megan leaves in mid-August to live in Belgium Flanders for 12 months. The experience will change her life, as it changed mine when I participated on an AFS exchange to USA in 1979-80.

    Together, these events reminded me of our responsibility as parents and adults to prepare the next generation, and to provide them with space to make their contribution in life. We all owe it to our kids and those that follow to give our best to this task. How will you prepare those you influence to become significant contributors in the world?

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    Boardroom motivations and habits

    Governance Research Societal Wellbeing

    Some very interesting articles have appeared in Harvard Business Review recently—articles about motivation, meaning and habits. These articles caught my eye because they were very different from the usual diet of (very good) economic, business and leadership articles. The majority of HBR's articles can be categorised as "tools and techniques that readers can apply to improve their business". In contrast, these articles focus on the person—on improving one's self and one's contribution—and they are just as applicable in the boardroom as amongst the wider workforce.

    That's right, directors are not immune. These articles are relevant because we seem to be living in a world where selfish motivations take precedence over "community good". I wonder how many corporate failures could have been averted had the characteristics described in these articles been apparent in the boardroom? Perhaps the global financial crisis and subsequent recession may have been averted as well?

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    Sacrifices...no unshod child in our city

    Accountability Societal Wellbeing

    Ever wondered about the sacrifices people around you make as they pursue their goals? Some people are motivated by quite selfish goals. They'll go without in one area to potentially win big later on. These people often get ahead, but equally often these people stand on toes and some are despised because of the selfishness. Others however are motivated by making sacrifices in order to make the world a better place. Simon is someone that fits in this latter category. I want to tell you about the work he is doing to help children who live in some of the poorest areas of our city.

    Simon runs the Shoes Project at our local church. He decided one of the ways we could help our neighbours was provide shoes to every child (yes, every single one, that's thousands of kids) that attends a decile one primary school in our city. He negotiated a deal with a sports shoe company and put the word out there. He asked people to make a sacrifice, to give money, to help a child. And guess what? They did. His workmates gave. So did local businesses, and so did people at our local church. Even other kids. People were moved by not wanting these children to go through winter without decent shoes. You see, with good shoes they'd stay healthier, and learn more at school. People took up the opportunity to forgo some of their own hard-earned money in order to put shoes on the feet of a child who either didn't have any or whose shoes were quite simply falling apart. 

    And do you think the kids appreciated the gesture? You bet! The project made the front page. Simon started with one school. When the sacrificial donations made by many were added up, there was enough money to give every child in two schools a new pair of shoes. All this has happened in the last four weeks. It's exciting! There's nearly enough money to do the third school, but there are so many more children still missing out. 

    Would you like to be part of this? Can you sacrifice $26 to fund a pair of new high-quality sports shoes for a child? If so, please contact me by email or Twitter and I'll connect you.

    This weekend, Easter, is when Christians the world over look to the core of their faith and the sacrifice God made. Dying for the sake of others is the ultimate sacrifice anyone can make—Jesus did this. Funding a pair of shoes for a growing child in a poor suburb is a much smaller sacrifice, but one with huge upsides.

    Why is Simon doing this? It's all about improving the wellbeing of our community and the society we live in. Simple as that.