A primary reality when working in international development cooperation organizations is their rules — both sticking to institutional rules and regulations as well as having to focus on staying within the currently set politically correct frame and value base.
While this is certainly not objectionable as such, it is nevertheless the reason for what we witness all around, the delivery of too many mediocre results …. or worse.
My thought on reality and primary reality was inspired by Carol S. Dweck’s “Mindset — How You Can Fulfil Your Potential”, p.124, where she wrote, “The minute a leader allows himself to become primary reality people worry about, rather than the reality being the primary reality, you have a recipe for mediocrity, or worse.”
In development cooperation the leaders are not the primary reality but the rules of the system are, and it seems that one main role its leaders have is to ensure compliance.
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