Moving from pain to promise

By David W. Marshall
TriceEdneyWire.com Columnist

The late Peter Drucker was one of the most widely-known and influential thinkers on the principles of management. Known as the father of management thinking, Drucker’s work continues to be used by managers worldwide. Drucker believed a leader in any business has the responsibility of words and deeds. Managers must commit themselves whenever they speak, not just in formal settings, but at all times, including informal interactions with employees.

Knowing what kind of example you want to set and acting accordingly will shape the culture around you, from customers to colleagues. He believed managers are leaders of society where they need to understand the value of human beings. Understanding the inner workings of a business is vital in moving the “system” forward, but it is only half the equation. The other half is people. Empathy and compassion for the people around you as well as adaptability will make the modern leader effective. Drucker’s human-centric approach not only applies to the business world, but it can also be relevant in our politics. While people are the greatest asset of any business, the same is true in every corner of our society.

He viewed culture as vital to sustaining organizational and societal values. He stated “A time of turbulence is a dangerous time, but its greatest danger is a temptation to deny reality.” One can easily say that the current events in our nation are so troubling that it makes the upcoming midterm elections the most critical midterm in modern history. These are without a doubt turbulent times, therefore none of us should deny the reality that many Black young adults believe voting is a total waste of time. They simply don’t care and feel there is no need to do it.

While schools may teach how people of color have struggled and fought in the past for the right to vote while being subjected to discrimination, threats, physical beatings and death, the images from the past does not resemble the reality many students face in their current day-to-day struggles. Politics and the idea of voting is not high on the priority list when trying to navigate and survive the realities of living in their version of America. There is more concern about being victims of street violence or police brutality.

Voting means nothing when there is no food in the house, no clean clothes to wear for school or constantly wondering if the lights will be turned off at home. It has to be understood that many young Black men embrace the belief; “A real man doesn’t ask, plead, or wait for a politician to come down from their “house on the hill” and save him. A real man finds a way to “make it happen” for himself and his family, regardless of which politicians are in office.” This male bravado is very real in a culture where politicians regardless of race are seen as “elitist others” who cannot be trusted. Conspiracy theories claiming elections are rigged simply reinforce their beliefs that voting is irrelevant. So how do we get people from pain to promise? Pain being the daily struggles of survival which can keep a person discouraged from seeing the merits of voter awareness and engagement. Promise meaning those with hope who have come to realize that being invested in the election process increasing the chances of having your best interest and safety addressed by political leaders who understand the value of all human beings and their lives.

When Peter Drucker talks about people who are leading edge individuals in the business sector, he is basically describing people of promise. He illustrates how there is a constant distance between leading edge people and the rest of the pack. On a scale of one to ten, promise would be a ten and pain a one. Ideally, when it comes to voter awareness and engagement, we want voters to be energized people of promise in the eight to ten range. The goal is to consistently close the gap by moving people away from their pain and toward promise. Even those who are on the furthest end of the scale. But people have to arrive at the point of readiness before they can get beyond the place of constantly replaying their pain. It is surprising how many young adults never had a serious one on one conversation which centered on voting and its importance.

During the 2020 election, Congressman James Clyburn and Stacey Abrams were leading edge individuals who were successful in moving voters from pain to promise. Congressman Clyburn’s endorsement and support for Joe Biden helped Biden to galvanize Black voters which ultimately propelled him to win the White House. Stacey Abrams’ efforts in voter turnout in Georgia was key to the Democrats winning the Senate. The hope is to build from the 2020 election and to not backslide by opening wounds of disappointment after only two years of controlling the White House and Congress. Meaningful and long-lasting change in the political arena requires winning multiple election cycles. That means winning in 2020, 2022 and 2024.

David W. Marshall is the founder of the faith-based organization, TRB: The Reconciled Body, and author of the book God Bless Our Divided America. He can be reached at www.davidwmarshallauthor.com.

This article originally published in the October 31, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.