There is a lot of talk in the news lately about corporate
environments like Google and Facebook, and which gender is most likely to exhibit strengths in their leadership styles,
i.e. compassionate and caring based on feelings vs an assertive and technical or scientific approach based on ideas.
Personally, I am tired of using the binary opposites to describe human traits – women and men both can
develop the so-called soft skills and hard skills, both rational thought and
emotional capacity. Isn't it limiting and ultimately destructive to try and cage
and clip the wings of these two birds called feminine and masculine or even yin
and yang. Why not free them from their labels and restrictions and allow them to fly free
and land in whomever they are needed.
Both sets of skills and qualities are in great need
today. But do we have to name them along gender lines? Traditionally, we have seen plenty of examples of what has been called by psychologists "the immature masculine": represented as someone who’s sense of self
is aggrandized with the judgment and belittlement
of others, as well as attempts to control and dominate, leading to aggression and
violence. And yes, there are also studies that
show that women excel at “tending and
befriending”; perhaps there are even genes
in our DNA evolved from the Paleo age that increase those tendencies. But today, if we want to live harmoniously, we need a larger vision, a more inclusive one, that doesn’t pit one gender
against the other by labeling these characteristics along gender
lines. We in our 21st century globally challenged world have an
increased need to cooperate with each other, to learn to use diplomacy instead
of aggression and weapons, and aim for better understanding amongst co-workers
and citizens alike.
The recent event in Charlottesville VA, a violent clash
between white supremacists and those picketing their march, is proof in point.
The more we attempt to divide and conquer with hatred and exclusion, the more
wedges we drive between gender, cultures, races, age groups, the more violence
is generated.
In this battleground, where is the Enlightened Warrior and
how can we cultivate this in both men and women?
A recent article in Psychology Today magazine (August 2017, Down with Extremes) suggests Moderation
is the key. Those who express too much courage become reckless, and those who
are too afraid (cowardly) only run and hide. Pleasing others too much, bending
over backwards or being obsequious is no better than being surly and
unapproachable. Call this yin and yang
if you will....but what we really need is balance.
The Warrior stands in the middle – practicing presence, discernment,
bold courage, with compassionate wisdom and heart. It’s a practice of being
mindful, visible, allowing oneself to feel emotions, not hiding them, nor
lashing out in reactivity. Mastery of self is required, and the enlightened, or
peaceful, warrior needs awareness of his/her shadow side, the unlovely parts of
self or flaws that may throw him or her off-balance. Centeredness and self-control,
not control over others, is the answer.
In these days of volatile, emotionally charged twitter feeds
and news flashes, we need less talk about what is feminine behaviour or
masculine, and more talk about how to cultivate this centered presence and fierce
compassion. Standing one’s ground belongs to every gender, even those who are
non-gendered. Protecting the weak and voiceless, defending the core values of
diversity, inclusion, democracy, and speaking truth to power requires courage
with a Capital C from women and men.
In her book The Four-Fold
Way, Angeles Arrien describes the Warrior as the archetype of leadership without once naming these qualities by gender. “We
come into our leadership skills by staying in our power, by showing up and
choosing to be present, by extending honor and respect and by being responsible
and accountable.” It is the path of the Warrior to embrace both her/his strengths
and weaknesses, the light and dark side of human nature, not to be caught in
self-denial or self-indulgence.
Claiming our personal power, being responsible for
protecting Mother Earth, and the vulnerable, showing honour and respect to
others in spite of our differences, is something
that people of all gender and race can aspire to.
Let’s embrace the code of the Enlightened Warrior, embrace
the middle way, and not be reductive in labelling our actions and attitudes with
the old monikers of masculine or feminine. “...it is the work of all human
beings to attend to the health of both our ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ houses: the
inner house of our selves, the limitless world within, and the outer house of
the world in which we live our daily lives.”
To live in harmony and balance with our own nature, and our
environment if the goal of human life. It’s time to bridge the gap in
understanding with some ancient wisdom from the Enlightened Warrior.
On a last note, Seena Frost, founder of SoulCollage(R) also sent out a call
to unite the opposites, perhaps for the first time in history. SoulCollage(R) is one of
the best creative and intuitive tools I know for discovering and dialoguing
with parts of self.
“Science
is now supporting some aspects of intuitive knowing: one, with evidence that
the earth is indeed a living organism; two, with proof that humans have evolved
over eons and are still evolving; and three, with clear evidence that the
planet is in dire straits and we must change how we treat Her. It is becoming more and more evident that
Yin and Yang can and must become partners, that the masculine and feminine
elements of thinking and intuiting, of acting and of imagining, of doing and
holding, of giving and receiving can dance together, perhaps for the first time
in history. The feminine is rising now, no longer to be dominated, and also
not to dominate. We want to partner and to correct the imbalances of these last
thousands of years.”
Perhaps if we can imagine this dance of the opposites and hold the two as partners, we will find that harmony and balance within which is necessary to create the one in the outer world.
