VP Training and HR - Feb-March 2011

Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.
Aristotle

Everybody wants to be somebody;
nobody wants to grow.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

“Everybody wants to be somebody; nobody wants to grow.” This is a quote which reminds me of numerous FOSIS, Isoc, and other organisational meetings I may have attended. Although, I would perhaps slightly tweak the quote to “Everybody wants to do everything; nobody wants to grow.”

Not always true, I know. There are many times in which we suggest many new ideas and go ahead with them, and some of them turn out to be brilliant and help us to grow. And of course, new ideas and things to do are natural to growing and developing. But sometimes we have to be careful. Especially in an organisation such as FOSIS which is very large, deeply rooted, almost an institution, and has layers upon layers of volunteers and committees and roles. To constantly come up with new ideas and initiatives, and yet not grow at the same time (except in size) is perhaps what is taking place in the organisation over the past few years. We still face the same challenges with certain projects and certain deliverables.

How then do we move forward, and how do we grow? By knowing ourselves. “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom”. And this is what the focus of THR has been this year, and in the past few months. I haven’t focussed on setting up quick-fix projects whose effect will be short-lived or rushed into trying to set up solutions. The focus rather has been on research and understanding of the organisation.

Throughout November, December and January the Professional Review project has looked at the challenges that some of our volunteers have faced, as well how some committees work together. And we have another survey coming out soon for all FOSIS volunteers. Recently, I also conducted another survey for regional committees, focussing on their roles and how they work together. The results of all of these have been fascinating and will contribute towards building more effective and long-lasting solutions for sustainability, institutional growth, and training within FOSIS, insha’Allah.

In a course I attended by Muhammad Alshareef, he kept on encouraging us to write the stories of our life. “I encourage you to write your life story in advance”. And it wasn’t only life stories but even specific sections, such as financial mastery, and so on. The above research taking place is all part of the story. The FOSIS story. And its all in motion.

Next time you sit down to have a think about what you can do for your Isoc or FOSIS, or to answer a survey of mine, I suggest you think deeply. About your growth. How you began. Where you are heading in this role and organisation. And what the story is.

Wasalaamu Alaikum