Final Integrative Paper by Leader Oliver Pabillon

Final Integrative Paper by Leader Oliver Pabillon

Who am I as a Leader? What kind of leader am I? Am I one of the very best?

Taking this leadership course has indeed created an impact on me as a leader called to action. The life lessons and activities made me realize my strengths and weaknesses as a leader. The Man in the mirror who used to be just an ordinary leader has discovered that leadership is more than just leading people…it has to be authentic and heroic... and should start with the self. The past few weeks have been a life changing journey through self reflection and sharing of self more to others.

Leadership begins with an inner journey.¹ According to James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, everything we do as leaders is based on the assumption that we matter. Before we can lead others we have to lead ourselves and believe that we can have a positive impact on others. Leadership begins with the self. Leadership is a process of self-development. Chris Lowney² describes this as one of the four pillars of Heroic Leadership which is Self-awareness: "To order one's life". "Leaders thrive by understanding who they are and what they value, by becoming aware of unhealthy blind spots or weaknesses that can derail them, and by cultivating the habit of continuous self reflection and learning. Only the person who knows what he or she wants can pursue it energetically and inspire others to do so. Only those who have pinpointed their weaknesses can conquer them. Obvious principles, but rarely heeded in practice. The early Jesuits invented an array of tools and practices to mold self-aware recruits. Cut off for a month from work, friends, news, and even casual conversation, Jesuit trainees dedicated all their energy to a searching self-assessment. Engaging in the Spiritual Exercises was the peak developmental moment of a training regimen that encompassed everything from scutwork to begging for food and lodging on a solitary long-distance pilgrimage. Recruits emerged from training knowing what they wanted in life, how to get it, and what weaknesses could trip them up." Second is Ingenuity: "The whole world will become our house". "Leaders make themselves and others comfortable in a changing world. They eagerly explore new ideas, approaches, and cultures rather than shrink defensively from what lurks around life's next corner. Anchored by nonnegotiable principles and values, they cultivate the "indifference" that allows them to adapt confidently." Third is Love: "With greater love than fear". "Leaders face the world with a confident, healthy sense of themselves as endowed with talent, dignity, and the potential to lead. They find exactly these same attributes in others and passionately commit to honoring and unlocking the potential they find in themselves and in others. They create environments bound and energized by loyalty, affection, and mutual support." Fourth is Heroism: "Eliciting great desires". "Leaders imagine an inspiring future and strive to shape it rather than passively watching the future happen around them. Heroes extract gold from the opportunities at hand rather than waiting for golden opportunities to be handed to them."

Discovering my authentic leadership. I discovered my authentic leadership by learning from my life story. My reflection papers clearly describes what I have gone through from childhood to who I am now.

One defining moment I have gone trough was meeting failure as a teacher. An excerpt from my defining moment paper: "My "first-take" of the Board Examination WAS A FAILURE. I went home sad and disappointed. I asked God the reasons why. Of all the hardships and sacrifices I made and at the end it's just a failure? Aren't my four years in college and six months of pure hard review not enough? I cried on that night. I fell asleep. In my dream God told me to hold onto Him for He has great plans for me. I woke up and read a passage from the Bible, Jeremiah 29:11 read, "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." I realized that night that it is not the end of the world. God is always by my side to guide me in all my endeavors. He reminded me those hard times which I was able to overcome. I also realized what is lacking great in my life – PRAYER. God opened my heart to trust Him and lean on His promises. I was given the opportunity to review again and finally in May 2000 I took the board examination. This time around I passed the CPA Board Examination. It was a sweet success. I always thank God for teaching me to trust in Him. That FAILURE during my first trial on the board examination was MY DEFINING MOMENT. It taught me how to be stronger and reminding me to strive for the better. What I know is not enough. God wants me to learn more and be more. A failure is a positive thing that God allows us to experience. Without failure we would not realize our weaknesses. Failing is not necessarily loosing but if we allow failure to hold us down, then it becomes a negative. From what I have learned and experience, I started to see failures or mistakes as stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks in achieving my goals and purposes. With the help of God and the people around me, I became more confident in facing every challenge that life or career has in store for me. I will not forget the Lecturer's comment: "failure as a teacher", as I reflected on this, truly my past mistakes have taught me valuable lessons and instead of giving up I should improve myself to be more competitive.

I was given the opportunity to review again. My Uncle, my Mentor encouraged me again to take the review. He shouldered all my expenses during the review and finally in May 2000 I took the board examination. This time around I passed the CPA Board Examination. It was a sweet success. I thank God for the REWARD He gave me for completely trusting in Him.

Relating my life's journey as in Joseph Campbel's Hero Monomyth, passing the Board Examination was the start of the bigger plan that is in store for me. I faced a lot of challenges both positive and negative. On the positive sides - beating tax deadlines, submitted management reports that were useful in management decision making, advised clients on business growth and development, helped clients save millions by recommending and implementing internal control procedures although sleepless nights were spent in client audits, leading people of different cultures and backgrounds, trained clients on business processes. On the negative - errors were made in financial reporting that resulted in wrong decisions made at client expense, misrepresentations made to clients, client's employees fired due to audit findings made, and dangerous travels locally and abroad as far as Kabul in war torn Afghanistan. Through all these years God was true to His promises. He led me to a position where I could help other people or my clients to achieve their goals. I return my blessings by being able to help my siblings finish their schooling and eventually repeat the cycle of helping others achieve their dreams and purposes in life by starting with finishing their schooling first.

My Enneagram test result described me as an Achiever. Achievers are energetic, optimistic, self-assured, and goal oriented. What I like being an Achiever is being able to recover quickly from setbacks and to charge ahead to the next challenge; staying informed; knowing what's going on; being competent and able to get things to work efficiently; and being able to motivate people.

On my Genogram I concluded that my family's lineage were not like the Lazatins in Pampanga , the Aquinos-Cojuangcos in Tarlac, the Romualdez-Marcos of Leyte and Ilocos, or even the Ampatuans in Mindanao.  We basically come from a lineage of fishermen, fish vendors, tailor and carpenters. The early generations almost did not even reach high school, maybe because of their situations and the environment around them back then when life was simple in the barrios. Not until Mt. Pinatubo erupted that affected their sources of income. That drastic change in the environment paved the way for us to realize that there is more to life than just fishing. The generation before me were leaders in their own way because they were able to cope with the changes and realized that their dependence with the bounties of the river is not forever. So they instilled the value of education. Others just settled with an easy life and depended on support from other relatives. I am thankful that some emerged as authentic leaders just like my two Uncles from both sides, Vergel and Rodel, which supported me in my studies and encouraged me to look ahead and see a brighter future. Starting from me (because I am the second eldest for my generation) education played an important role in molding me on what I am today. My siblings and other cousins followed me and saw in me the importance of education especially when I passed the board exam. The reality of not being born as leaders is not a hindrance to not becoming a good one. Some of us were made or transformed to be leaders due to external factors and realizing from within ourselves that the future brings a lot more than just what our ancestors have settled with.  Starting from my generation, there are no more fishermen, no more tailors, no more carpenters and laborers. We were led to become future leaders of the next generation of our family through education and self awareness.

Upon reading "Letting Your Life Speak by Parker J. Palmer, I found the importance of listening deeply to find my true vocation. The Call to arms speech and passion showcased my advocacy for professionalism. Leadership in the Accountancy profession requires the call to right action. It should start with me. Our country needs accountants with integrity that help uncover fraudulent schemes and work towards preventing such from happening. Our society needs honest professionals who play vital role in the economic development of the country. It is my advocacy to do the right thing. CPAs can provide excellent service to clients without compromising the quality and integrity of the profession.

The team building activity further developed my performance skills with my group mates. We were motivated to perform better than our clash mates and focus on becoming effective and efficient in achieving the specific goal of each challenge.

The AVP projected my past experiences and interactions with different people that molded my character.

As leaders we are faced with challenges that test the decisions we make. Upon reading Leadership and Decision Making by Kevin Hoffberg and Clint Korver³, it was discussed that we can learn about decision making from examples of heroic leadership and heroic deeds. The book summarized the following:

A decision is only as good as the weakest link - "divide and conquer": break the decision down and work it a piece at a time.

How you frame decisions matters - you should have a hand in declaring or inspecting every significant decision frame.

You can't judge a decision by the outcome – need to evaluate the quality of the work done at each of the Six Decision Points: frame, people, process, alternatives, values, and information.

Decisions are linked - think many moves ahead.

You can't know everything beforehand - identifying, understanding, talking about, and ultimately quantifying uncertainty are all part of good decision making.

People have different risk profiles - in putting together decision teams, think about risk tolerance.

Organizational decision making is a balancing act - make these sorts of balancing decisions on a case by case basis. As an alternative, create rules around the four paradoxes for the different types of decisions people in your organization regularly make. Inclusion vs. Efficiency. Empowerment vs. Control. Rules vs. Method. Head vs. Heart.
"Two-choice dilemmas" make leaders - decide how you're going to work the problem, and then work it with purpose.

Organizational decision quality must be built a step at a time - pay attention to every step.

It's not a decision until you commit - make "irrevocable allocation of resource" your top priority.

Leadership learned from The Ignatian Tradition. The Jesuit/Ignatian tradition provides insights on how to discern the correct path when faced with strategic choices, and the importance of leadership with courage and by example.

Enrolling in MBA is a small step in my leadership journey. I enjoy new learning shared by the community of leaders. I observe the strengths of my fellow leaders and somehow reflect those on myself. Halfway through the course have already been a fruitful reflection on self development. Each experience is a step towards improvement. I believe this course would help me focus towards achieving my objectives and conquering my fears and how my humbleness will lead me head on to that straight direction of call to leadership. My journey through leadership is not about taking that one big leap, I am motivated by taking a lot of small steps along the way that add up to my achievements. I am always reminded from looking back at those small steps to take a look at myself first and start with myself before I pass judgment on others. The factors from my modest beginnings which I have enumerated in this essay molded me as a humble individual; a leader by example. I wanted change to happen, to empower people around me. The change must start with me, as the "Man in the mirror" suggest for change to happen it should start with me.

I was inspired by the speech delivered by Dr. Bengzon when he receives the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award of Asia CEO. He shared his two deeply held core beliefs – Innovation and Giftedness. He shared that the Filipino is "Magaling". An excerpt of his speech read: "I've been fortunate enough to serve our nation and our people in many different capacities, from the exercise of my profession to government service to the private sector.  In the course of that journey I've encountered many different peoples and cultures as well, and I've come away from those encounters firmly convinced that the Filipino has what it takes to compete successfully on the world stage. This belief has led to a driving theme in my life:  that the task of leadership is primarily to build institutions which enable our people to realize their inherent excellence, in essence to reveal them to themselves."…" How do we unleash excellence in the Filipino?  This leads to my second core belief:  we must have the passion to always find a better way – to innovate, if you will – not just to build a better mousetrap or redefine a business model, but ultimately to empower others, and do so on a progressively wider scale… Having been animated by these two core beliefs, I truly believe that we Filipinos have the giftedness to bring things of great value to the world. And so we carry the obligation to stand as equals with the world's other great nations and people.   For those of you who have grown up with this as an article of faith, it may seem like a strange thing to articulate, given how basic a belief it should be.  But all of us who love this country and her people – and I include our adopted Filipinos in this audience as well – will realize how relatively new the growth of this facet of our national consciousness is.  How exciting it is to see it being born."

Finally I would like to share my leadership wheel which I believe reflects my authentic leadership self.

References:

1 Executive Forum, Spril 2011, Copyright of Leader to Leader is the property of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner

2 Heroic Leadership by Chris Lowney

3 Leadership and Decision Making by Kevin Hoffberg and Clint Korver © Copyright 2003 - 2006, DQI, LLC

Submitted by: Leader Oliver Pabillon