Leadership Is Overrated by Kyle Buckett

Author:Kyle Buckett
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2023-06-29T00:00:00+00:00

10

Nobody’s Listening (Are You?)

When Malcolm Muggeridge put Mother Teresa on television, he had no idea of the movement he was about to incite. In 1967, the well-known and controversial journalist conducted a half-hour interview with the future saint for the BBC. The interview was not particularly compelling, at least in terms of normal broadcasting standards, and at the time nobody had any idea who this woman was.

The Albanian nun, visibly nervous and clearly lacking in formal media training, spoke quietly and somewhat meekly about her work. Muggeridge, a critic of organized religion, claimed to have been transformed by his experience of meeting Mother Teresa, but their conversation was difficult to understand and follow, further obscured by her accent and her inability to take up any more space than absolutely necessary. Neither seemed to know what they were getting into, and it was doubtful whether the interview would even be aired. The show aired late on a Sunday night in what was dubbed the “God slot.”

The response was nothing short of overwhelming. Although neither Muggeridge nor Mother Teresa had made any appeal for funds, people responded in droves, sending letters, cash, checks, money orders, and more. After the broadcast, a total of £25,000 flooded into the BBC, the equivalent of £410,000 in 2022—well over half a million US dollars. The letters echoed Muggeridge’s own claims of transformation.

Mother Teresa had an effect on almost anyone who experienced her, and just as the once-skeptical journalist’s eyes were opened to wonder and mercy in her presence, many others remarked in ways that were reminiscent of his first impressions: “This woman spoke to me as no one ever has, and I want to help.”

How did she do this, this penniless nun living in India, relying on the kindness of strangers? It was all in the way she communicated.

The Power of Walking the Talk

To lead an organization well, you must first demonstrate the standards you expect others to adhere to. The words you share carry tremendous weight. Mother Teresa and the order she founded—the Missionaries of Charity—sparked a global interest in helping the “poorest of the poor.” She turned the hardened minds and hearts of more than one generation away from modern cynicism and toward a greater awareness of the less fortunate. And she did it without saying very much at all.

A year after that BBC broadcast, Muggeridge, now completely transformed by his experience, flew to India with a film crew to make a documentary about Mother Teresa’s work with the poor. Normally, this sort of project would take a month and a half to complete, but Mother Teresa allowed only five days. During those days of filming, the crew visited the Home for the Dying Destitutes, an abandoned Hindu temple previously dedicated to the goddess Kali.

With the help of the Indian government, the Missionaries of Charity restored the building and turned it into a free hospice facility. At this home, anyone who had nowhere else to go was welcome. Those who were dying and suffering from incurable or untreatable diseases were encouraged to receive a comfortable exit from this life.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.