What better place to daydream than an airport lounge? From anywhere to anywhere, the flow of travellers is never‐ending. Imagine a wild river in the middle of untainted Wyoming, from anywhere all are congregating, all are fluidly, harmoniously even, evolving in parallel fashion towards a common destination: away.
If you stop for a second and observe, you will notice all kinds and all forms of travellers – the busy business–woman, her hand clutching her mobile phone, speaking in English or maybe Russian or Mandarin. She is frantically running towards her gate on her Louboutin heels … ah the strong appeal of those so famous red soles. She seems to be on the verge of closing some deal.
Some of you would now be expecting for me to digress on the unspoken sense of community you find within travellers. We are all the strangers from somewhere. One would think I am about to dive into the blessings of progress and technology and reflect on community and its twin sister collaboration.
Others of you could bet I am going down the route of globalisation. A sacrosanct contemporary – or is it modern? ‐ concept. You believe I am going to ponder on something like “Globalisation: a necessary evil”. It is at the same time helping our world to shrink rapidly, making everything known and somewhat accessible to all. It can be perceived as contributing to fast economic growth – think fashionable Myanmar, Mongolia, Mexico and Mozambique. On the other hand, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find an “away”, truly to confront the foreign, the different, the unknown, making it dificult to find the necessary conditions to heighten the levels of maturity and self-awareness one needs to develop as a person, a business person, a business leader or a leader.
Well sorry, this is not where I am going, apart from technically being on my way to the Land of the Free from the Fragrant Harbour – Hong Kong. So let us get back to the airport.
If you pay closer attention, you will suddenly find him – or her – the one I am looking for, who I affectionately call the Wanderer. Yes, you know who I am talking about.
There is this uncanny feeling about him, of someone being part of another species, Half Hermes – the god of transitions and boundaries, not the iconic fashion brand – half human, unaffected by the surrounding chaos, seamlessly at ease in Changi (Singapore), JFK, Heathrow or Murtala Muhammed International (Nigeria).
He is that quiet one, usually sitting a little apart from the crowd, iPod on, in his bubble. At times, you will find him with a book in hand. Always you will notice the beaten leather bag besides him, carrying Moleskine notepads and a bunch of pens.
Most of the time you will catch him daydreaming, observing his surroundings with this intense look, the look of someone who is trying to understand things. The gaze of someone happy to be right here, right now, in that moment. I must admit, I am totally smitten by him.
Why? Definitely because when you look at him, you feel a tingle of curiosity and a strong sense of peace. You will want to question your need to rush towards something, towards better or towards more. He holds the mirror to your own perspective and planting seeds of change.
Why? Most definitely because, he is not a citizen of the world, but an observer of the world. He knows how important it is to slow down, and at times even stop, to think. He knows how to break free from demanding technology and information frenzy to go back to the basics of context settings and human touch. He knows how to look beyond the obvious and make sense of things, at the bigger level. To me, he is a kind of ultimate business strategist.
Why? Because I am searching for new leaders. I am hunting for new models of leadership in the middle of this crazy paradigm shift we are experiencing and he could be one of them. Change, observation, thinking, human. I think he simply knows how to be.
So next time you find yourself in an airport, look for him, and if you do catch a glimpse of him, alluringly passing through lounges and other concourses, with this special aura, a certain eeriness, do not forget to smile and wave to him.
Do not be surprised if you see him waving back, because if you can see him, you have become him.