As-Salaam Alaikum Family!
We have an inner voice and an outer voice. Our outer voice is the animated version of the inner voice that represents what we are thinking. A physical gesture is an outer voice way of helping others understand what we are saying. Another type of gesture is an act that has no real purpose or effect, but shows support or respect for an idea.
Evo Morales is a Bolivian politician who became Bolivia's first Indigenous president. He is the founder of Bolivia's Movement For Socialism. His 14-year presidency is known for prioritizing the rights of indigenous people whose population is estimated to be as high as 70 percent, and weakening the colonial influences of their Spanish conquerors. During his presidency, he nationalized Bolivia's gas fields and oil industry and instituted land reform that distributed unused land to the poor.
In addition to the real changes, he made a symbolic gesture of changing the face of the clock on the congress building in La Paz to reflect the southern hemisphere view of how the sun's shadow is cast. In the northern hemisphere, above the equator, the sun's shadow is cast on the right, hence the numbers on the clock face following twelve noon are arranged on the right side of the clock face beginning with one 'o clock and the last number before twelve midnight is eleven o' clock on the left. In the southern hemisphere, below the equator, the sun's shadow is cast on the left. Evo Morales changed the clock so that it runs counter-clock wise meaning that after twelve noon, beginning with one o'clock, the numbers are arranged on the left side and ends with eleven o' clock on the right. He named it the "de-colonialized clock". It did not change the actual time nor it did it change the political standing of the indigenous people. However; it put the colonial leaders with their northern hemisphere perceptions of the world on notice. They were notified that they live in a different time and a different world, and that their time for ruling the indigenous people of Bolivia is coming to an end!
Coaching tips
1. Please take time to reflect on what your outer voice is saying about what you are really thinking!
2. Ensure that your actions are not just a string of symbolic gestures, but concrete actions that demonstrate how you live on a day to day basis.
Comments