POVERTY & SUCCESS: ARE PEOPLE POOR BECAUSE THEY ARE POOR? Asks Martin Udogie

* "In cognitive demanding fields, there are no naturals" - Malcolm Gladwell.

Malcolm Gladwell, who is by far one of my favourite authors, uses the most powerful and persuasive technique for writing - and speaking: storytelling. But what does he mean by above quote?

What it means is that in human endeavours or activities that involve mental or intellectual effort or application of a high-level skill, there is nobody who is naturally born for it. This means, that it takes preparation and hard-work to achieve excellence.

The argument relates to what's called the "10,000 Hours Rule".

Research and studies have found and proved that geniuses and those who achieve greatness put in at least 10,000 hours of preparation before they hit that level of performance that we all celebrate. From chess players, to surgeons, basketball players, footballers, musicians, Nobel laureates, etc, from Michael Jackson, to Michael Jordan, Lionel Messi to Floyd Mayweather, the Williams sisters, Dr. Ben Carson, Bill Gates, Wole Soyinka, etc.

And 10,000 Hours translates to roughly 3 hours every day, for 10 years! But you can shorten that equation. Doing 6 hours every day will make you an expert in just five years! 10 hours every day, in 3 years!

As told in the book, Accidental Billionaires, Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg and his team of developers used to start their day working from mid-day, and won’t got to bed until 5am the following day (that is 18 straight hours every day!).

Many of those early employees are billionaires today.

So, if this is the simple formula for success, why are many people not successful? Or to pose the question slightly differently, why do we still have so much poverty in the world? There is something called poverty trap. People are poor because they are poor.

To prove this, brilliant American economist, Jeffery Sachs teamed up with glamorous American actress Angelina Jolie to produce a video for MTV. They visited Sauri in Kenya where they met Kennedy, a young farmer.

Kennedy was given free fertilizer and as result, the harvest from his farm was twenty times what it had been the previous year. With the savings from that harvest, the video concluded, Kennedy would be able to support himself forever. See? Simple! The gift of free fertilizer freed him. It was the only way he could escape poverty.

But then other more skeptical economists started to ask that if fertilizer was really so profitable, why couldn’t Kennedy not have started by buying and applying little quantities of fertilizer and gradually grow from there? In the same Kenya, one of the most prosperous farmers was a man named Otieno. How did he manage to rise above others?

In the Kenyan village, most farmers can’t afford fertilizers. Why? Because during the harvest season, when they are liquid they do not invest in fertilizers. There are other uses for the cash. By the planting season when fertilizers are plentiful, they are cash-strapped.

So what did Otieno do? He buys fertilizers during the harvest season when he has cash. So, how does he meet his other needs for cash?

According to the book, Poor Economics by A. Banerje and E. Duflo: “He works a bit harder as a bicycle taxi driver (a job he did on the side when he was not too busy with farming)”.

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Martin Udogie, Publisher, Trainer and Programme Host for the Radio Nigeria Network, wrote in from Lagos.

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HOW LEADERS CAN OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES OF RETRO-EXPERIENCES by Benson Agoha

* "Unfortunately I can’t travel back in time yet, but at some points certain rifts in the timeline open up, allowing you to witness the gaming splendors of days gone past.." - Martijn Arthur Willemse (The Video Game Historian).

Travelling back in time is often not a very palatable thing, especially if you have already had a distasteful experience.

The main question here, I think, is not about whether you can travel back in time, we all do. Being a process, you sometimes just find yourself swept off your feet. So, it is more about recognising when we are in it, and much more importantly, understanding its implications as well as knowing what to expect next.

Knowing what to expect NEXT, helps us prepare for it's challenges. And with such awareness, ride the waves, through to shore.

But although Martijn Arthur Willemse deals with games, my purpose here is to apply retro experiences to leadership, using his quote, in the hope that my definition, and application to subject are understandably relatable.

In `UNMASKED', I had since written an article on `retrogrades', and later, on `backward walking'. I dwelt on, and talked about, how they occur - and are taken advantage of - by those who know `how'.

I am only going to apply the two concepts to leadership and by so doing, hopefully create the necessary platform that offers useful clues to leaders.

A few lines above, I mentioned that travelling back in time is a process. I suppose I have to explain further that sometimes, you can actually start the process, whereas at other times, you find yourself thrown into it. The later is more relevant to this discussion.

For example, when you sit down, try to relax and reflect on your past, you have control over starting the process. You decide when to take a break and sometimes, you even decide where to start. Being in control, you can further decide what are relevant and what are not.

When you find yourself thrown into elements of your past, some of which are so distasteful and unappreciable that you would rather not revisit them, there is cause for concern.

* Clockwise or Forward Direction.

So my purpose here is to discuss retro situations over which we have little control.

Personally, you would have had people in your past so `selfish, brutish, crude, vindictive, deceptive, abhorable, abominable, intollerable, greedy, inconsiderate' ( hahaha..should I hold back? Oh yeah, my group are `Cronies' not `Wailers'), that given the choice, you would rather not meet again. Yet you do, and every single time, you always ended up hating it.

But leadership is a role whose objectives must be, skimmed of personal agenda and, aligned with the corporate objective.

There are also situations, during which leaders did what they genuinely believed was in full consonance with their personal and organsational values, as well as complying with company's policy, but whose result turned out wrongly, and left them with unpleasant tastes, displeasing memories and discolouring their leadership credentials.

It's perhaps only in football that Managers/Coaches have their worst and best experiences - almost simultaneously. Fired today and rehired tomorrow, evidently obscuring their most recent agony. And unless they are serial disappointers, they would look forward to making a better history.

Well, you get my drift then when I talk about retrogrades and how they affect human, and by implication, leadership experience.

As a leadership enthusiast, my concern here is on how leaders can recognise and handle retro-experiences analogous to `tragic' organisational experience.

Some retro-experiences afford leaders the chance to right a wrong, or better put, retrace their steps, locate the point of digression and get back on track - picking up from where they veered off. Others however, are eminently distructive, particularly if the leader had not been analytical enough or mistakenly relied on a wrong data.

Retro-experiences, that occur sometimes, if we must insist, beyond human control, are caused by `retrograde'. This is when the rotational and orbital motions in the solar system are in clockwise direction.

Generally, scientists have since found that all or most (except three) of the planets revolve eastwards.

Courtney Seligman wrote that “most of the rotational and orbital motions in the solar system are in the same "eastward" direction, and motions in this direction, are referred to as direct motions.”

But when when planets are in westward motion, they are considered as travelling in opposite direction and therefore referred to as a retrograde.

Anti-Clockwise, Counter-Clockwise, Backward or Retrograde Direction.

Retrogrades negate or contravene the natural order of flow, except for the three plannets known to revolve backwards - naturally. When this happens, you notice that suddenly, things that have happened to an individual in the past, begin to repeat themselves and they begin to have `retro-experience'.

So retro-experiences `pull you back' through old events or occurences. On the plus side, optimists argue that retrogrades point to the evidence that the universe can, and does, control human excesses.

They may yet be right but my purpose here is to discusse how leaders can manage the effects of retrogrades. Below, I list some guides to understanding and recognising retro-experiences.

Ways To Recognise Retro-Experiences:

(A) If you were expecting a paper to be signed, it could meet with an obstacle.

(B) If you were expecting the release of the next instalment for a project, it could stall.

(C) And if you had successfully negotiated a new deal with your creditors, you could be recalled to the negotiation table.

(D) Contracts already signed can be delayed or even cancelled.

(E) Even some anoying people from your past will start reappearing - and worse, they would probably be ready to anoy you again.

Understanding this important natural - and manipulable - phenomenon help the leader navigate some of the tempests facing leadership because it has the potential to halt projects; disorganise group activity and slow the journey; as well as put a question mark on the credibility and proficiency of his leadership.

Regrogrades are manipulable and below, I explain how leaders can manage its effects on their organisations effectiveness.

Overcoming The Challenges of Retro-Experiences:

(1)Awarenes is key to managing retro-experiences. Understanding it's nature and be alert to spot it when it starts, is an invaluable skill that leaders can't ignore.

(2)Do a little research to find out if some other natural phenomenon - like an eclipse - is due soon and how many are expected. These are natural, and may seem beyond human control, but their effects can been cushioned.

(3) Analyse its potential impact. This is like determining what happens next and how it will affect the group or the organisations operations.

(5)Plan for it. Developing contingency plans helps leaders respond appropriately to retro-experiences. When they say "I knew it", or "I was expecting it", it shows awareness, through conventional communication or intuition.

(6) Communicate expectation and plans to important surbordinates.

(7) Implement plan as meticulously as possible, when conditions for its development arises. Here, the leaders organisational, managerial, control and leadership proficiency is tested. A leader who can ride the waves and manage crises triggered by retro-experiences effectively, is already proving his mettle.

Have you had a retro-experience in your leadership capacity that threatened to derail your project? How did you handle it?

Please, feel free to write in and share your experience with me and my `Cronies' on Leadership Lane. Feedback is essential and we would love to hear from you.

Thank you for visiting and please do return.

* Twitter: @bensonagoha.

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* Courtney Seligman, is a Professor of Astronomy and Science at Saint Mary's University, Nova Scotia, Canada [ http://cseligman.com/text/sky/retrograde.htm ].

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Benson Agoha is the founder of Woolwich Online. Please click on Coloured Text to Visit >>> [ .] Woolwich Online.

HOW KOREA PUT A STOP TO THEIR PLANE CRASHES by Martin Udogie

DEVELOPING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN CORPORATE LEADERS by RD Kosor

It is no longer sufficient to simply ask for leadership from employees. Leadership must be defined, boundaries set, and behavioral expectations laid at the feet of those granted the awesome responsibility of leading others.

Thirty-plus years of research have resulted in the conclusion that the most successful and competitive leaders in the world share four core characteristics: the power of irresistible attraction, a motivational approach to a shared vision, the ability to arouse brilliance in the team, and recognition of the individuals who make up the greater whole. Simply put, these leaders each have well developed emotional and psychological intelligence. The challenge inherent in developing this kind of competitive leadership is translating these four talent areas into trainable curriculum.

Emotional Intelligence (EI), has recently received a good deal of attention. Whereas in years past being emotionally in touch would have been considered a weakness, today it is strength. Having emotional intelligence means maintaining not only the awareness of internal impulses and natural reactions, it means having the ability to control those impulses. As awareness builds, so does the capacity for sharing appropriate empathy for others.

A natural by-product of the previous three is the power of the leader to elicit the desired response from those who report to him. The ultimate goal is to be well versed in each of these four areas all while focusing every ounce of emotional intelligence on the overarching goal, whether personal or professional.

It might seem to some as if having emotional intelligence amounts to having the ability to manipulate personal responses in an effort to get what is needed from others. Perhaps so. After all, is it not part of a leader’s responsibility to rally the team to achieve something greater than can be accomplished alone? No matter how it may seem on the surface, manipulation is never a goal of true leadership. In fact, pseudo-transformational leadership theory reveals that there are people in leadership positions who are adept at using manipulative tactics to retain power. Ultimately, their behavior results in a loss of productivity due to fear, distrust, and the alienation of the team.

Emotional intelligence is not the manipulation of self or others. The difference is intent. Leaders believe in their own ability to achieve. It is one of the things that draw others to them. But even more than that, leaders believe in the ability of others to elevate the process of achievement. They encourage innovation and creativity in others the likes of which develops a competitive and lively spirit.

That kind of encouragement comes through appropriate social interactions, professional speaking skills, and the ability to effectively communicate across lines of diversity. This kind of workplace environment is contagious and can impact entire organizations.

Leadership development requires psychological intelligence in addition to emotional intelligence. Psychological intelligence can be boiled down to two words: attitude and approach. Training psychological intelligence begins with developing hope and resilience and culminates with self-efficacy and learned optimism. Each of these four developmental areas is distinctly psychological in nature. Much like emotional intelligence, these require a level of awareness of the skills and authority over them.

The development of hope begins with the clear definition of attainable yet challenging goals. Once defined, roadblocks to achievement are presented and multiple pathways are explored. The result is the leader’s ability to redirect team activities when necessary and perseverance in times of change. Resilience logically builds from the preparedness mindset found in the development of hope. Acknowledging that change is constant requires that leaders think two steps ahead which results in an attitude of flexibility in the face of a trial.

Psychological intelligence completes the leadership development paradigm with positive self-efficacy and learned optimism. A key component in self-efficacy is confidence. Having the confidence to take on challenges and then to put into those challenges the kind of effort necessary to succeed speaks to a leader’s psychological capital. On the surface, it seems rather redundant to train a leader in self-efficacy. After all, are leaders not already confidant and capable? The answer is most are, most of the time.

Everyone experiences moments or even phases of life when confidence is shaken. A mistake is made, an innovative design falters, a sales goal is left unmet and the leader becomes hesitant. It is natural, both emotionally and psychologically, for failure fallout to occur. The key is not to block out or ignore the resulting fear but to embrace it…examine it for what it is worth…and then determine how to avoid making the same mistake twice. Then, move on to whatever comes next.

Which leads to the much-needed psychological asset of learned optimism. How essential is it to be able to brush aside the disappointments and look forward with a positive attitude? How refreshing is it to be around someone who sees the silver lining rather than the blackness of the storm?

Learned optimism is the key asset in becoming psychologically strong. Human beings are naturally negative, masking that negativity in realism. Especially in business, it is widely acceptable behavior to be chameleon like depending upon the expectations of the boss, the organizational culture, and especially in politically-sensitive situations. It is this practiced pessimism that leads to an expectation of negativity.

Learned optimism steps in and attempts to disrupt this process. With a strong belief in the organization’s mission, a firm understanding of where the leader’s purpose fits with the accomplishment of that mission and the acceptance of self the leader is trained to approach situations from an optimistic perspective. Practical exercises reinforce a belief in every person’s positive attribution and purpose with a focus on what it will take to succeed both now and in the future.

A common misconception is that this kind of leadership development is reserved for the executive level employee. Leadership development through emotional and psychological intelligence has been proven to impact sales force moral judgment, increase trust between client and sales person, improve customer service satisfaction, vastly increase innovation and creativity, and improve financial viability of organizations across a span of industries. Organizations with well-developed leadership programs will benefit from supplementing their current training programs with specific topics previously discussed.

The combination of emotional intelligence and psychological intelligence results in the kind of leader who has the charisma others seek out, the ability to motivate teams toward a common goal, a sincere desire to coach growth, and a constant search for greater knowledge. Leadership development curriculum must focus on both ends of the spectrum while recognizing that emotional and psychological growth is a process that requires professional and practical instruction.

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RD Kosor PhD, Author, Trainer and Transformational Leader, is an Adjunct Professor at the Arkansas Tech University, and founder of Metamorphosis.

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DO YOU WAIT TO BE NOTICED? Asks Benson Agoha

["Excessive spiritualisation of the environment, creates problem for society - and for business."] - Benson Agoha

By the time you read this, you will probably make a mistake of `misapplication' of the hypothetical scenarios, and I sincerely hope not.

But when I opened my mail box today, waiting for me was a message from an agency, advertising a position they thought might be of interest to me. They probably sent it to several others. But the one small lesson to gain from their action is that they did make an effort to communicate their intention.

You see, information is power! And I am not talking about spiritual information through dreams or psychic manipulations - which are unreliable. In business, communication has to be physically done.

Which is probably why in our world today, `physical communication' is at the top of the list of the most successful organisations. And is Carlos Slim Helu, the world's reachest man worth $73bn, not into telecommunications?

Wonderful Weirdo wrote that "constantly talking isn't necessarily communicating". If that holds true, not talking at all is an unforgivable sin from a leader, indeed from anyone, who expects response when he has said nothing.

Leadership that does not know how to commuicate is potentially dead - and business communication must be in physical, not spiritual.

During one of my field runs, I visited a client for an appointment, only to find everyone having fun at a hastily arranged fairwell party for a retiring member of the organisation.

After a quick chat, my client invited me to join the party. Two days later, she called me.

"How do you ensure that a `target' notices your interest in them without necessarily pre-warning them?" She asked me.

"What sort of interest do you mean?" I asked her.

She explained that since she was informed that a member of her team was leaving due to ill-health, she had been considering a potential replacement without alerting him. Now, she had to make a decision but thought that the staff in question has a major fault.

"Do you mind letting me in on this major fault?" I asked.

She told me that the man hardly notices people around him. I asked if he has any problems with his sight or was just plain daft.

She said "Ahh, Benson. That man is not daft at all, far from it."

I said the chances are the man actually notices his environment much more than anyone can imagine, otherwise, he would be daft, and won't even deserve to be there.

She pondered this and said she would have a chat with him. A week later, she called me back to say she confirmed the man for the position the previous friday - immediately after the `chat'.

* [ Structure of the Eyes ensures that pulses from the optic nerve travel in a spherical way through to the lense, making it possible to see a wide spectrum of images at the same time. ]

I said "ooops!..what happened? How did you make up your mind?"

"The man is sound, extra-ordinarily sound if I must be honest. I suppose I judged him wrongly because of complaints from others."

Intuition can be a powerful tool for decision making, but leaders are advised to rely on it only when it has consistently guided them aright.

People see what they want to see. Yet, among the lot, they can further prioritise them for recognition and even storage. This is why academics defined perception as "how we organise our sensory organs, in order to give meaning to our environment."

The evaluation of what makes a `good leader' and what makes a `great leader' maybe ongoing among scholars.

But, it has since been accepted that good leadership has something to do with its quality, whereas great leadership has to do with how leaders handle adversity. It would be naive of anything to think that the journey will be smooth-sailing.

A man maybe working on the computer, yet his spectrum is in full swing, so that nothing, and no one could go unnoticed.

But the question is, why must people expect you to notice them when they know they need your attention?

Criticising just for fun, without communicating is the bane of leadership. If you need it done, let them know and if you need him, let him know.

If you are an employer, don't just wait to be noticed, do the noticing and, more importantly, you must do that in the `physical' please.

Like the employer, the unemployed have a list of potential employing firms, and business scholars, though making effort to recognise the impact of spirituality on organisational members, do not yet recognise spiritual communication.

Excessive spiritualisation of the environment, creates problem for society, and for business, the employee and the employer.

Serious employers go on a head-hunt over their employable targets - and they do so by physically contacting them and making their intentions known.

That's aceptable business practice!

* Twitter: @bensonagoha.

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Benson Agoha is the Founder of [.]Woolwich Online.