Business talk

EVEN THE BIGGEST TREE CANNOT MAKE A FOREST BY ITSELF

Charles Joseph Nyahucho (right) has more than 14 years of experience in supporting business undertakings as a trained accountant and business analyst. Here he shares life lessons for professionals which he has learned over the years.

Sina dormitory was my residence for one year as a high school student at Tabora School. Just after the entrance, turn to your right then go straight to last cube on your right. In that cube, my friend Lameck, aka ‘Kwisha’, and I would rest after attending classes.

One day I visited Lameck with a problem from Advanced Pure Mathematics, written by CJ Tranter. After getting help with the solution, my attention was drawn to statement on the wall of the cube, which read: ‘Even the biggest tree cannot make a forest by itself’.

This statement inspired me to compose some practical lessons on daily living which I’d like to share with you. A forest is a complex ecosystem that includes but is not limited to an area of land, trees and streams of waters that support a myriad of life forms. Trees are the catalyst in enabling a conducive environment for animals and plants within the forest. They remove the pollutants from the air, offer a protective canopy, cool air on hot days and preserve heat during the nights.

Reflecting on the statement, I saw how it could be applied to the role of teamwork within an organisation. Trees carry out roles we would all do well to follow.

Be like a tree...

One, trees have a protective role – guarding the soil from heavy rain.

Two, trees have a creative role – providing a environment for inhabitants

Three, trees have a supportive role – sustaining a diversity of life forms.

Four, trees have an enabling role – cooling the air and absorbing pollutants.

However, regardless of the benefits of each individual tree, their impact is far greater as a forest. All roles performed by trees are in vain in the absence of a forest, no matter the size of the tree. Life can be a forest and human beings play almost all the roles performed by trees within it. Let’s look at the four roles performed by trees in the forest and how they equate to our own lives in the workplace.

Protective

As a leader in your workplace, you should be a buffer to protect those in your team. Also, if your team experiences any failures you take responsibility. Think about the last time your achieved this in your work.

Creative

In creating a conducive environment for people to work in you need to take a holistic approach, including the feelings, beliefs and tastes of team members. As a leader in dealing with challenges in your team do you go above and beyond your job description in analysing performance? If you look back at your recent dealings with team members, can you say they were done with a holistic approach?

Supportive

In our life encounters we respond differently depending on our emotional

intelligence. When a colleague comes to you with a challenge are you supportive or do you see it as a chance to enact a long-awaited revenge? If you are a true tree of the forest, you need to be thinking ‘how can I support my colleague in this?

Enabling

There will always be differences of opinion in the workplace. It is human nature. However, as a leader you need to be able to cool a charged environment and absorb these shocks rather than fueling conflict. The way you speak and conduct yourself will dictate how well you carry out this role.

Thank you esteemed readers. I would like to leave you with the reminder that a forest is never made by a single tree, but each individual tree has a role to carry out.