This morning I had the honour of having breakfast with Sir Bob Geldof (well, me and a ballroom full of other people).
I have been along to a few of these sorts of things and usually you hear chitter chatter and the odd clattering of a piece of cutlery.
But not today.
The expression “you could hear a pin drop” was made for this morning. There was complete and utter silence as people were mesmerized as he stalked the stage, back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.. Talking in his beautiful lilting Irish accent.
So it’s a well known story how the singer from Ireland took on African poverty. But there is so much more to the story.
He talked about the extreme and abject poverty in which he grew up; but not with a sense of self pity; but rather that he ‘just got on with it’. Much to be said for that as an approach. Self pity can be debilitating.
He talked of compassion for others; the marginalized in our society, the unseen, the unheard, the unwashed. Not just that they have their story (and that their story is often more interesting than most); but sometimes their decision to jump from mainstream to the margins is a decision borne of a revulsion of what our world, with all its ‘progress’ has become. And he talked about how things are sometimes not what they seem; and how “charity” can be gentle rather than overt and in your face.
But of course that was not the main story.. the main story was about Africa, and poverty and children dying. He talked about the peculiar sound that a child makes when dying from starvation; and how it is often the vocal cords that are the last organ to stop functioning, so the sound they make when dying is a strangled rasp.
I have talked about the power of story telling before in getting people to come on board with your change effort; and let me tell you – people were there. He had us with his imagery and his language and his setting of the scene..
And then he said “to be told that someone is dying and do nothing about it makes you complicit”. Indeed. Strong words, combined with strong imagery.
He talked about the how Australia is perfectly positioned to do something. And how we need to “box clever” now.
Then he talked about how he had achieved all this; being in his words “just a pop singer”.
In spite of his fear.
Because deep fear is made of two components – for failure yourself but more importantly failure for those on whose behalf you are doing this.
And then he talked about focused intent. About overcoming fear to get there. And the notion of true commitment to a cause:
“.. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it…” (WH Murray)
So my question today is ..
What are you doing for your cause, your change effort; whatever it is.. and are you committed? Truly committed?
