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Staying focused - The insights of the Alchemist

Governance | Tesse Akpeki | 17 Feb 2010

I got a lovely present from my colleague Siobhan for Christmas – The Alchemist written by Paulo Coelho.

For sustainable transformation this is an invaluable resource.  It touches on why we don’t have the courage to confront our dreams. 

First we are told from childhood onwards that everything we want to do is impossible.

The second obstacle is love, where we know what we want, but we are afraid of hurting those around by abandoning everything in order to pursue our dream. We do not realise that love is not something that will prevent us going forward and that those who wish us well want us to be happy and are prepared to accompany us on that journey.

The next obstacle is fear of the defeats we will meet on the path. We must be prepared to have patience in difficult times.  Defeats happen and the secret is to fall and get up. Sometimes we fall back on that lie ‘I did not really want it anyway’, even though we have staked everything on it. 

Then comes the fourth obstacle: the fear of realising the dream for which we have been fighting all our lives. The words of Oscar Wilde ring loud and clear: “Each man kills the thing he loves.” The mere possibility of getting what we want can fill us with guilt.  As we observe those who fail we feel we do not deserve to succeed. We forget the obstacles we overcame, the suffering we endured, the things we had to give up. We overcome this obstacle by understanding our noble purpose, by understanding why we are here.   

I wonder which one of these you can relate to?  Somehow obstacle four connects with me pretty well. The fear of success. How will I sustain it, if I get there? Will it be a void?  What will happen when I get there, will I need to find another mountain to climb?  And so the dialogue goes on, and on.
    
In the hustle and bustle of accomplishing our goals, the demands of leadership sometimes pull us far too removed from the laughter, passion, and yes, tears, which form the core of our raison d'être. The Alchemist encourages us to continue to hold steadfast to our activities, our programmes, learn the lessons from failure, but not forget to stop and admire the palaces we are building and the dreams that inspired us to begin our journey. 

A truly inspiring read, I thank Siobhan for this wonderful gift in my Christmas stocking which will keep me going on for the months and years ahead.

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Who's Who: Tesse Akpeki