Trust Your Anchor

Like a boat being battered about in the open sea amidst a raging storm, we too are sometimes caught rocking about in our own ocean of uncertainty and doubt. In times like these, it helps – just like the battered boat – to have an anchor.

We need an anchor that we can hold onto when there are challenges. The reason we need anchors in general is so that we will not be swayed or distracted when challenged. We should be able to drop our anchor into the troubled sea to stable ourselves and remind us of certain things. In this way, an anchor is a sort of ‘point of reference’.

One such anchor is trust. With a friend or partner in life, it is easy to get through each day without much trouble. But when conflict or uncertainty arises, without the anchor of trust, there will be nothing to which you can both cling. Let me explain with an example. Think about two police partners. They go in for a raid and they ‘have each other’s backs’. One sees what’s ahead, and the other watches out for what could be coming up from behind. They trust each other, so if one partner yells out “Duck!”, the other partner is not going to question why. They drop their trust anchor and they duck without question. This is important: to be able to trust someone not only in the good times, but also in the tough times, without question.

Another anchor is being able to trespass and not allow that trespass to become personal. If my friend is doing some wrong – perhaps they have a bad attitude at work and it is causing others to not want to work with him – then I would tell him, because I care about that person. My friend should be able to drop his anchor and believe me, even if he can’t see it for himself. If he is not able to do this, then he will resent me for pointing out something that is not necessarily positive about him. This could do damage to the friendship.

Please take a moment to ponder… Anchors are a way for us to rely on ourselves and on others. They are an important part of relationships and a vital part of our own development. If someone tells you something that may be hard to hear, you should not be angry with them. You don’t get angry at a mirror when you look at it and it shows you that your hair is messy, now do you?

 

Sincerely,

Joseph Bismark
Group Managing Director
QI Group

The First Mentors of Society

The month of May is a month for mothers, and this past Sunday was the day on which we should all have taken a moment to realise the huge role that mothers play; for mothers play one of the most significant roles there are – not just in the formation of the personality and values of their children, but also in the formation of society as a whole.

So, to all the mothers and the future mothers, I say to you that your role is honoured. You are the first teachers and mentors of society. It is from you that we first learn about morality and from whom we form our beliefs and our principles. It is the mother who first teaches each of us – as eventual members of society – about compassion, strength, humility and honour. Mothers are the embodiment of compassion, patience and tolerance.

Women in general are given a special ability to withstand pain more than men; the pain threshold of a woman is amazing. Mothers withstand the heartache of seeing a child make mistakes and they persevere as they watch a child learn from those mistakes. Women can bear the pain of giving birth and they willingly endure this pain. A man could not. Despite the pain and risks involved with childbirth, women lovingly and willingly give birth to children and nurture them through good and bad. In this way, women are giving birth to society at their own expense. Mothers have a natural affinity and affection to having children.

Above the pain, the risk and the heartache of being a mother, above all else, mothers sacrifice themselves for their children. Mothers have great responsibility because they’re the teacher of the child and with great responsibility comes great sacrifice. All mothers should realise this. It is their duty to ensure their child grows up honourable and develops to be an active, valuable and socially conscious member of society. It can be hard for a woman, who becomes a mother, to find the balance between her career and her bound duty to her role as a mother. Women in general have to understand how important this balance is. This is part of the sacrifice of being a mother. Once you have a child, that child becomes your priority and this is not something to be ashamed of. A woman can still be ‘corporate’. But she will realise from the moment she becomes a mother, that her most important and most rewarding job is to love, teach, nurture, support, guide and raise her child. There is a balance to be found between being a ‘corporate woman’ and a mother. This balance may be hard to find, but it is important to us all that the mothers of the world find this balance. And the rest of us must support her as she walks this delicate line.

Please take a moment to ponder… a mother must always be respected because of the ‘services’ she has ‘rendered’. This service is un-repayable. A child, in every aspect, owns his or her life to their mother. A mother should never be undermined or belittled. A mother should be cherished, loved and remembered for the pain and the sacrifice she made. Most importantly, she should be honoured for the love and care she has given us and for her role in creating society.

 

Sincerely,

Joseph Bismark

Group Managing Director, QI Ltd