Dr. Terry Anderson: what does it mean to be a leader in public service?

5 Mar 2015

Dr. Terry Anderson, Professor at Troy University and expert in public administration came to Ukraine within the Fulbright Program.  During the final module Good Governance program the public servants attended a course by Dr. Terry Anderson.

In Ukraine good managers as usually work in business. After the Revolution of Dignity some of them decided to start work in public administration. Some of them are still hesitating. In your opinion, what can motivate the second group?

I can answer that question by asking three simple questions which I will also answer.

What kind of future does Ukraine have to look forward to?
The American President, Abraham Lincoln, said, “The best way to predict your future is to create it.”   No one knows what lies ahead for Ukraine, but that does not mean it is outside your control.  Roll up your sleeves and create the future you want.

But how can I change things?
According to Buckminster Fuller, American neo-futuristic architect, systems theorist, author, designer, and inventor, “You never change things by fighting the existing reality.  To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”  Stop blaming the past for the inertia of the present.  Roll up your sleeves and create the future you want.

But we have already tried to change and failed; why try again?
Noam Chomsky, American philosopher and political commentator, advised that, “Optimism is a strategy for making a better future.  Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.”  The future belongs to those who have the courage to dream of it.  Roll up your sleeves and create the future you want.