Report: Leadership Afghanistan, November 2007

Soon after leaving Dubai, the pilot spoke through the intercom saying, “We have left Dubai 50 minutes ago–and still we are flying!” That was good news. We arrived safely and felt secure the entire week. This is what happened in short:

This was the third and final conference for the class of 2007. The atmosphere was very receptive, friendships went deeper, and our team of teachers meaningfully connected with the Afghan leaders.

Our translator, Nazif, led the “Survival Project” as the exercise of the “Creative Problem Solving” seminar I taught.

The class designed a permanent leadership insititute for Afghanistan as their final project. They called it “New Leadership, New Afghanistan.”

The conference ended with a graduation ceremony and a banquet. Participants brought friends, family members, work associates and bosses. One participant relayed a comment from his sister-in-law. She said, “These Americans are unselfish. Afghans need to be more like them. We do everything for ourselves.”

We also conducted an Advanced Leadership class based on the book, “Death by Meeting.” Not knowing how that would translate into Dari, we called it, “Leading Effective Meetings.”

I want to close with a special thanks to the very generous partners who make equipping leaders in developing nations possible. I am grateful for the privilege of connecting with these leaders. One of the news stories that continues to be under-reported is how warm and relational the average Afghan is.

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