Ethical Leadership from a Public Servant’s Perspective

In between working as an intern, panicking over my thesis topic and deciding which museum to visit next, I have been given a task(!): Interview a leader in your community on ethical leadership. This is just one of the prep works for the incoming ASEF Youth Summit that I will be attending next week. I had to take a moment to think about who I consider as a leader…and an ethical one at that! In my years of working in the field of research, I have been fortunate to have met several outstanding people who inspired me to become the kind of leader that I one day hope to be. Yet, among them, I decided to focus on someone who I can most identify with, and whose leadership journey I am most familiar with.

A leader among leaders: Melissa on her recent trip to China for the Forum on China-ASEAN Techno Transfer and Collaborative Innovation

Meet my friend and former workmate, Melissa Bulao. A seasoned program coordinator, she is one of the brilliant people behind Tuklas Lunas, a Drug Discovery and Development program of the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (PCHRD).  As a process expert in project management, she has spearheaded initiatives aimed at improving the Council’s procedures for monitoring and evaluation of various research projects. She also represented her agency in many local and international S&T fora and engagements. In addition to her degree in Chemistry, she obtained a diploma on International Health to further broaden her perspective on the interplay between S&T and health. A consistent achiever in her academic years, she continued to exemplify excellence throughout her professional career. Currently, she supervises and mentors junior project officers under the continuously expanding drug discovery program.

We started the interview with the question on what makes one an ethical leader. Melissa shares that an ethical leader is one who exhibits honesty, integrity, and selflessness. In showing honesty and integrity, Melissa believes that an ethical leader uses their position to motivate and inspire their team to achieve organizational goals. She further stresses the need to prioritize the community and others over the pursuit of ones’ self-interest.

The idea of self-interest over that of the “greater good” is a particularly interesting ethical issue for me. While I believe people are inherently good, we are not impervious to the to our own biases and ambitions. This prompted me to ask her views on how a leader can remain ethical, selfless or honest in the face of personal interests. Melissa has this to say: “In civil service, I am always reminded of who I am serving and whose money we are using. (And) it’s the Filipino people that I am serving, it’s their money that we are using.” I find her response so simple yet an idea many tend to forget. Her statement is not only relevant among civil servants but for almost all vocations. It is vital that we do not forget who we serve, and why we do what we do.  Interestingly, she adds that sleeping peacefully at night motivates her to keep herself in check, in an ethical sense. She explains that with a strong set of moral values she has formed growing up, her own conscience is a big factor in ensuring that she remains faithful to her oath as a public servant.

Since she works in a research funding agency, she jokingly adds that an “ethical dilemma” is an ever-present part of the job. An example she cited is the common issue of funds allocation. While most researches do intend to solve pressing scientific questions that will be of benefit to society, certain realities such as scarcity in resources mean that many of the decisions they make are closely tied with certain ethical challenges (e.g. who should benefit more, which projects to prioritize). Unsurprisingly for someone from the scientific community, Melissa believes that the decision-making process should be rational and evidence-based. However, she also emphasizes that exercising empathy is must when dealing with people particularly in communicating a decision.

To wrap up our conversation, I asked Melissa for some advice for young leaders and those who wish to take on the leadership task in the future. She offered these points:

1. Have a strong heart and mind. Because the reality is far from the ideal, it takes strength in character to not be disheartened by realities of life. Instead, embrace the challenges that come along.
2. A leader is only as good as the people he or she leads. You cannot work alone. As a leader, you must also encourage collaboration. Moving forward towards your goals means working and growing together with your entire team.
3. Lead by example. The quality of your work will speak for you. Without even trying, respect is earned when you consistently show that you can be relied on to do the job right and to do what is right in whatever project you are working on.

Simply put: live and work ethically.

Aside from a leader at work, she is also a leader in travel!

Post Note: When I asked for her permission to do this interview, Melissa replied with three letters: LOL. A typical lighthearted response from my friend. But perhaps it is also typical for many of us to discount ourselves and our peers as “leaders” since we have yet to project the  image of a traditional leader: one who is at the top of an organizational chart, an elected official, a manager, a founder of a company, a movement or an enterprise. Yet, I find that the most effective leaders are those unassuming characters in our lives for whom we attribute deep respect and admiration, a colleague who helps bring out the best in us, that person who we run to for answers or advice, or sometimes, if we are lucky, a friend who walks with us side by side and asks, “Tara, let’s have another round of Samgyupsal!”

Salamat, Melai!

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LINKS LINKS LINKS!

ASEF:http://asef.org
ASEF Youth Leaders Summit: http://www.asef.org/projects/themes/education/4442-3rd-asef-young-leaders-summit-asefyls3

Rusty “Tin” Years on WP

I don’t write now as often as I would have wanted. Often I’d think of something interesting to write about but I would often lose interest. I logged in on my account because La Toussaint will be celebrated in a month’s time in Paris and I remembered that I wrote something about it years before.

I was welcomed by a WP notification: Happy 10th year anniversary! Wow, where did the time go! Yes, I may not have written much, and, often, not even remotely well but I do thank the old (or perhaps younger me?) for not procrastinating in making a blog account. I vaguely remember googling which blog platform to use: Blogger vs WP. I had a french-themed blog as I was just starting to learn French then, although ten years in between then and now didn’t really make much difference (the kind madame at le boulangerie will surely agree that mon français sounds very “fresh”).

I don’t have much to show really, not the significant number of followers that some people then aimed for when they started blogging, or more importantly, a decent portfolio of writings to show. Just the occasional babble now and then. But in those ten years, I have had the most interesting conversations with random folks I will never have conversed with if not for this platform. The times I spent typing away some blog drafts that didn’t even see the light of day or those times when I pushed for my target of writing five posts a month — those were really fun. Now, I blame Netflix mostly for not writing more…among other things 🙂

While I regret not writing more, I do still consider my small corner in the big cloud of the cyberspace as a success, probably a measly one at that, but one I still treat with much fondness. The “typos”, the grammar mistakes, the opinions I had (or may still hold), all the words in between this time and years previously are pieces of evidence of how my written thoughts changed and evolved.

I don’t know if WP and I will still see our 20th year together. It can be bought by Zuckerberg’s daughter for all we know, or be taken down. But I guess I should just keep typing and see where this goes.

La vie parisienne 1.0

Today is my 21st day in Paris, or in Villejuif to be more precise. The Eiffel Tower is often always just thirty plus minutes away by metro. I often dreamt of seeing the tower but I never imagined that I will be seeing it this often. Paris was just a dream destination before. Now, it is the third city which I can really call home.

The Eiffel Tower shot from Place Joffre

It isn’t my first time in Paris. Truth be told, even on my first time here, it didn’t really feel real. Not in an OMG-pinch-me feeling. It was not like in the movies where my eyes grew big(ger). My heart didn’t leap. I guess getting dropped off at Bercy close to midnight robbed me of that feeling. It was more like, tadaaaa, but with less enthusiasm. But it was not anticlimactic either. It may sound a bit like a stretch but really this city has yet to make me feel like a tourist. I am not saying that I feel that I belong 100%. It seems that I have read up and thought about this city for so many times that coming hear felt like the most natural thing in the world.

I re-watched Midnight in Paris the other day. Marion Cotillard’s character, Adrianne, said that she can’t decide if Paris is more beautiful in the morning or at night. I agree. This city holds so much charm that you just want to devour it whole only to find yourself being devoured.

I have a couple of months more to explore, I know it won’t be enough. Still, I couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to be part of this city even for a short while.

And So Now, We’re Here.

I’ve always wanted to write about my travels. But like 93%* of people who have had the same thought, I have never really gone around doing it. I thought about making another blog. Do the whole “study abroad” schtick. But who am I kidding? It’s comfortable here and I know it takes me forever to start anything. I have been so far away from my comfort zone, so I think staying in a cozy spot would be justifiable this time.

I have been here in Antwerp for more than eight months now. Time does fly fast. This side of the world has so many nice things to explore and so many interesting things to write about. Living in a different city, studying abroad and visiting other country have been such an adventure. There is a huge chance that I might just write stuff about the state of Belgian fries, or the ever-fickle weather. Food and the sun are nice things to talk about too. We’ll see. It depends on the weather, I guess. 🙂

So, see you around? 🙂

A year later…

Well, the ink didn’t sink in. Life happened — as it should. But the words stopped. Not in real life, but perhaps just here on this virtual space. With Facebook, Instagram and blogs, I often wonder why we even bother to put our lives out there.  I don’t think it is just the usual argument of humans seeking attention. More often, I think it is that need to let things out and express yourself with an audience. That cliche of wanting to be heard. That weird feeling of existing side by side with your own kind. No words need be exchanged sometimes. Just a space shared with another soul is fine.

Scrolling through IG posts, there seems to be a wealth of memes and comics about how introverts live, think or see the world. I reckon, most of it has been made by introverts themselves. It’s amusing how a group of people who professes to lose energy from social things can be so out there about the topic in social media. Perhaps it is precisely because the internet is not exactly a social platform in the classical sense? Interestingly, I don’t really see similar posts about extroverts (maybe my social bubble has blinded me from them or they’re probably too busy “extroverting” to have enough time to make these references).

This is not a diss on the glorious tribe of introverts as I may very well be a member, but rather just an observation which I try to relate to my interest in writing (which wavers from time to time often). I find that I write less when I have people to talk to about the things I actually wanted to write. It is as if writing it all down has somehow become redundant.

I still remember those quiet after office hours where I sit at my desk typing crazily about life, my hopes and dreams, and some other shit as if the whole world will be tuning in. It was nice to get a reaction here and there, but having to see your thoughts written, staring back at you, that is quite fun (and embarrassing too).

I think, in the future, I would like to embarrass myself a few more times.

 

Let the Ink Sink In

Despite all the things I actually want to write about, writing has somehow lost a bit of its wonder. Not having been able to write anything worth posting, writing now feels like an awkward conversation between friends who have drifted apart.

Before, it was so easy to just type things in. Now, I feel like every word is up for scrutiny, not by any reader, but by the very paper I write things to.

Attempting to spill out the words in this blank space feels like opening up to a familiar, yet now unrecognizable place. I wonder if the problem is in the paper, or the pen – like trying out a new ink on a piece of parchment. The ink seems to effortlessly melds itself into the fibers of the paper, many moons before. Now it feels like I am using an ink-filled pen on a glossy sheet.

The resistance is palpable. A resistance that was probably built from a long period of neglect, of fading familiarity — much like many things beyond writing.

Maybe, I need to give it some time before the ink soaks the paper. I wonder if I should just buy a new notepad, or something.

For now, I hope the ink sinks in.

 

Why Misery Loves Company

Once there was Misery.
Swimming, breathing, solitary.
It went about its business like you and me.
Lived on its bubble while sipping tea.

One day Company came.
It had color that I cannot explain.
Neither good nor bad.
It didn’t really make one happy or sad.

Misery was curious and somewhat amused,
Of this new fellow that came rolling through.
Things are the same, but not exactly
It’s just that this time, there is Company.

Sometimes it speaks
Sometimes it sings.
The other day it was silent,
Brooding even, it seems.

Misery went about its routine.
Lived on its bubble while sipping tea.
But now Company is here
With Misery, drinking its coffee

“Misery loves Company”
I heard someone say
The reason, I wonder
So I started to ponder.

Not for its mood or songs,
Not because of what it’s given or done,
Despite liking coffee over tea
Misery still loves Company

Even after tea has run cold,
In a bubble drowning in silence,
Misery has company
….and that makes all the difference.

Travel Notes: Manila

Travelling is an awesome teacher. And while some learn their lesson on top of a mountain or in a deserted island in some exotic destination, I got mine in Manila, the same “unsophisticated” city that I was born into.

Fresh out of my first trip abroad, I stepped out of the cab, looked around me and saw something different. Well, not too different, but it certainly wasn’t the same. Having spent the the past five days in four different cities in Thailand, I think I still had in me the wide eyed wonder of a tourist. Everything I saw felt like it had a promise of a new discovery. Perhaps this is to be expected while travelling in a different country, but the feeling of weird unfamiliarity prevailed during that hot May morning.

– Let the excitement subside, I reminded myself.
– Adventure’s over.
– There’s nothing here you haven’t seen.
– But is there really nothing more to discover?

I walk the same streets everyday going to work and school. The only place that I am used to exploring are the brightly lit halls inside shopping malls. Basically, I know the place that I know, but outside of that, I am lost.

Travelling, for me is not just about getting on a plane to go somewhere different (although, I wouldn’t say no to that). I think it has more to do with the intention of experiencing a space with fresh eyes and savoring all the craziness that comes with it.

Don’t be a foreigner in your own country, I think that is how the Philippines’ tourism catch phrase years ago is translated. Although I know that it meant to encourage Filipinos to  travel the Philippines, I also don’t think that it is such a bad idea to go about with the “eyes of a tourist” sometimes.

Familiarity does breed contempt sometimes. Even worse, familiarity nurtures indifference. Seeing the same squalid environment and hopeless traffic condition day in day out has robbed us all of the opportunity to appreciate the energy of this bustling city. The intention of experiencing this place, this vast living space, has all but passed. The beauty, the history and the spirit of the city is left waiting to reveal itself for the next willing tourist.

Lighting up

Candles are so full of metaphors, or at least us humans keep on making some sort of interpretation on a lighting mechanism we invented ourselves. Anyway, life is short so I decided to indulge a human frailty this quiet night.

Candles are most magnificent when they are serving their purpose–when they are giving light. Somehow, in this process, the wick, the candles core, can sometimes lose its light by drowning on its own melted wax.

In order to keep the light from burning, you either pull out the wick or pour out the melted wax from the candle holder to keep the wick from drowning.

Tonight, watching how the flame danced reminded me not to overdo things, to not drown from our own version of reality. It is also sometimes necessary to rid ourselves of things we have grown to consider as part of our being, to shed some pounds perhaps, or to just pour out the negatives in order to keep the light alive so our purpose can be revealed to others and also to us.

Ang Payo ng Pulmo

Hinga nang malalim, ang sabi nila.
Hinga lang, hinga lang. Isa pa.

Kung madadala lang ng isang buntong hininga,
ang sabid sabid na nadarama,
ang sigaw na ayaw kumawala,
ang bulong na naguusig, nangungutya,
ang galit na humahalo sa pangamba,
ang pagkalunod sa dagat ng mga pinalampas na sandali,
ang pagkamanhid na ikinukubli sa tawa at ngiti,
ang takot sa bawat gabing paparating,
ang pagbagsak mula sa banging hindi pa nararating

Hinga nang malalim, ang sabi nila.
Sa bawat paghinga, may saglit na segundo ng pagasa,
na may kamay na hihila,
na sa mabigat na tangan ay magdadala,
na ang dilim ay kusang magpaparaya…
na kahit sandali’y sisilip ang mga tala.

Huminga nang malalim, ang sabi nila.
Pagkat ang paghinga lang ang tanging magagawa
Nang iyong katawan, nang iyong baga.

Hinga lang, hinga lang. Isa pa.
Huminga nang malalim
….ang sabi nila.

Uncorking…again

After almost a year, here we go again. Writing an entry here feels like praying to the Big Guy after a long long while. At first, you don’t really know where to begin despite knowing how much you really want to let out. It’s also probably like opening a bottle of champagne, once the cork is out, the words should just keep flowing in.

I used to write regularly here. I guess a lot of it has to do with my “five posts per month” goal and also the novelty of blogging for me at that time. I don’t think I will ever run out of topics to talk about. But oftentimes, when I have talked to somebody about some new idea or thought, it feels a bit redundant to put it again in writing.

Another blogger and also real life friend calls her blog a “repository of her thoughts”. I think that is quite accurate. The cyberspace is a great way to dump some brain farts and probably a place to spill some of those heart farts as well.

Here’s to more online spills and spiels! 🍻 (<—that’s a beer emoji, in case it doesn’t properly show)

No Thank You, Google

I thought Google had all the answers.
It does not.

Some theorizes that in the future, not too far from where we are today, the cyberspace will have achieved some semblance of omniscience. But it won’t.

Humans know lots of things. We also do NOT know a ton of shit. We may know some things, but not all. Definitely not everything.

As long as we have a heart that even the minds cannot decipher, the human condition will remain to be a bottomless crevice filled with irony and enigma.

The mystery of our humanity might look endearing (to aliens perhaps?), something to set us apart from unicorns and hyenas. But when you find yourself drowning in that same pool of uncertainty, you will crave for the cold and unflinching comfort that only “knowing” can bring.

✌

Kickstart

After more than a year of not writing anything worth posting, I am at loss. Not exactly at loss for words, but more at loss on how to organize my thoughts, which topic to write first, and how in particular to begin. I think I am over thinking this. I rarely jump the gun especially with words. Maybe I can make an exception this one time? I ramble often, mumble even, non-coherent thoughts that would even confuse me as a reader.

Buuut, what the fork. I hear Sara Bareilles in the background telling me to ” let the words come out”. Seriously! This doesn’t really warrant bravery, writing. Well, this one in particular does not, me thinketh. This is more of a “don’t think, just do” kind of exercise. Probably just like riding a bike after not doing so for so long? I would be the last person to confirm this. I don’t really bike but that’s what they say.

Ah well, a couple of words already on paper. I shake my hand and give myself pat on the back.

“In order to live a long and happy life…, you need to write. No matter how stupid it may sound, you need to write.” – Dr. Gelia Castillo, national scientist

Match Up: Good versus…Great?

Good and great.

These are two words that can be used interchangeably in describing people, events and things. I have often thought that “great” is in many ways better than just being “good”. For example, when  asked about a particularly pleasing experience, one could say that it wasn’t just good. Instead one can describe it as something that was rather great.

Same words, right? Only, the latter seems to carry much more weight — in a higher degree of “goodness” if you may.

But my simple understanding of both of these terms was somewhat changed when I read how Mr. Ollivander described Lord Voldemort in the wand choosing scene in Harry Potter.

“Curious indeed how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember…. I think we must expect great things from you, Mr Potter…. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things — terrible, yes, but great.“

Suddenly, these two words no longer felt like proper synonyms of one another. I mean, can something really be great and not be good at the same time?

Apparently, the answer is yes.

Growing up, I thought that in order for one to be successful (whatever that means for each person), one must also be “great”. Excellence has always been the aim, hence being merely “good” would not really suffice. As I meet people with varying levels of successes and accomplishments, the difference between all things good and great seems to widen all the more. This is not to say that most great people are far from being good, or the other way around. I was just struck by how different these words mean when describing an individual.

Greatness, despite its obvious relativity,  is often easier to gauge while goodness, in its truest form, is far more difficult to define. In an effort to make personal changes in attaining both of these description, one cannot help but compare the roads that lead to each of such attribute.

Winston Churchill once said that “great and good are seldom the same man”.

I wonder if this is really true.

Merci 2013, On y va 2014!

2013 has been a really amazing year for me. It is so amazing that even the word ‘amazing’ sounds too puny and insufficient for such a blessed year. I think crazy good is a more fitting description. There isn’t any competition really between this year …