Care and grow.

I never got to find out if this is an ancient philosophy or where it originates from. I was introduced to it at my old job. It was a chore at the time and I walked into the seminar half-heartedly and I thought there was better things to do with my time. I was wrong.

I was late for the session. On both days. And Mike was unhappy when I would arrive late. But he didnt say a thing until the second day in his opening address to all of us. But by that time I had already caught the feels from the day before.

All the way home, some 30kms away I didn’t play any music. I was dumbstruck in my reflection. I would catch myself in the rear-view mirror.

When I got home on that first day I replayed the day’s session in my head and read my own hand-writing and I was asking myself how this entire thing could be just so incredibly rational, yet so simple.

In my next job, when I found the place to be a bit of a people mess I reached out to Mike and I asked him how to get hold of Etsko, from whom the philosophy and the book and the methodology surfaced from into my world. So Mike, bless him, in his busy schedule sent back the contacts and I reached out.

Etsko was enthusiastic and came to meet my team a few weeks later. It was a bit of a hard sell, because the guy who could make the decision on implementing the processes didnt buy into it and it remained an uncompleted action item for me that year. And that was also a lesson for me, on leadership you see.

The Care and Grow philosophy centres on just the one simple thing. If you care for people, they will reward you with actions that benefit all of you, including them. You all get good relations and reciprocation of good things such as profit, together. And it doesnt matter your position in the team, the organisation, and it remains true even for romantic relationships.

What matters most is the intent. And the benevolence of all of your intentions. If you aim to do good, then its that thing thats said about the universe rewarding you back. And I think it all starts from the inside. If you are selfish in your intent then everyone else would just be as selfish in wanting to get for themselves what they can out of any situation.

And so, imagine, if you are the boss and you take a master-slave approach, the slaves will work their hours inside the cotton fields and take their time picking the cotton and then procrastinate in cutting the sugar cane, and they will take forever to water the avocado orchards. All the while prices are wandering off in the wrong direction at the stock market.

And so when the master eventually takes the harvest to the market, there will be little profit and his mind then reinforces the thinking of I want it all to myself and he gives a pittance (if at all) to the workers. And the slaves will remain disgruntled and the cycle will continue. However much he whips them or lynches the ones that grossly piss him off when his rum gets finished.

The leeve breaks eventually and the slaves are free and the master then himself gets a hanging from the mob of slaves, if he doesnt run out of town.

I digress.

But care and grow is a great thing to reflect on, I had made some of Etsko’s words a supplement in my morning routine when I was having a tough time at work, and I enjoyed toying with some parts of the book when I had it during lunch breaks.

Care for someone enough to want them to grow. And to grow to be better than you, and as they grow you must also learn from them and at times suggest to them their next. And it all becomes very rewarding to all of you. I think that’s the premise of the principle and the philosophy of it all.

I think our society and our communities and our romantic relationships need that. No?

Peace to you my brethren.