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Against All Odds Vol. 1, No. 6 * December 9, 2008
 By JCI Mem. ANGELO DANIEL R. PARCON
2007 President
As aspiring leaders in our societies, we must learn to harness our inner courage that allows us to face the odds head on despite an overwhelming disadvantage we may have against it.
I just watched an interview that featured the recently victorious Manny Pacquiao over the boob tube. Dyan Castillejo asked him, entering the ring against one of the most successful fighters this decade has ever known, how he was able to maintain composure and to concentrate on the enormous tasks that was laid out before him.
It wasn’t a secret that the Pambansang Kamao held a distinct disadvantage against the supposedly much heftier and taller Dela Hoya, be it in the bookies or the sports analysts themselves. Heck, a few of our countrymen even chose to bet on an Oscar victory than to bank on the promise that Pacquiao made to come out with the W.
Keep your faith close with you and never lose hope
His reply was simple. He simply kept the faith, kept on praying, kept on believing himself and held dearly to the fact that whatever happens, the Almighty will be with him. What soon followed was the most embarrassing and worst beating that a 10-time World Champion in six divisions, former Olympic gold medalist in Oscar Dela Hoya had endured in his entire boxing career. Jaws dropped each time PacMan landed those oh-so-valuable fists on the million dollar looks of Dela Hoya. A whole slew of bettors cried a river of tears as the rounds kept rolling onto PacMan’s advantage. Take this into consideration: I believe the final betting odds were +135 for Manny and -155 for Dela Hoya. If someone bets $100 on Pacquiao, they win $135 if Manny came out the victor. Now for someone who bets on Dela Hoya, they’d have to shell out $155 to get an ROI of $100 only. Considering almost more than half the world was betting on a Dela Hoya victory, you could just imagine how many rivers of tears flowed nonstop after that day.
Sometimes we all will feel the pressure at a given point in our leadership roles. We can easily succumb to the temptation of simply giving up as the easiest and quickest resort to overcome this. Believe me, I know a lot out there bit the dust in such a manner. Sometimes we just have to go with our gut and instincts and challenge the odds that we are presented with. Always remember, God doesn’t give us something that He believes we can’t handle. The trials and the difficulties in life are given to us to make us all the more stronger and more resilient. It is our choice to face these head on, or to easily roll over, whimper and die a coward’s death.
Accepting the role also mean accepting the odds
A leader has to understand that in accepting such a role, one also accepts the burdens that these roles sometimes carry. We all sometimes find ourselves alone and in desperate need of help. This is true because despite the relative success that our chapter enjoyed at the end of my term in 2007, I did experience this to a certain degree. That is where you will find the jewels in your membership. These are the members who stick with you and decide to ride the rollercoaster with you wherever you go. I have had the pleasure and honor of having my jewels during my term ride out the experience with me. They were the ones who faced the odds with me and came out winners at the end. They were with me when we harvested the fruits of our labors after being given our one year to lead.
What is important for a leader is not to easily balk at the odds that are stacked against them. Another example that I can give on how a group of individuals decided to step up and refused to be intimidated by what they came to face with happened at the Intramural games at my son’s school of University of San Carlos North Campus, also my old school as well. Those who know me know about my passion for the game of basketball. When I visited my son’s (and my) school for their Intramural games yesterday, I grabbed the chance of watching the basketball game between the smaller Sophomores against the grizzled (hey, this is High School anyway) veterans of the Seniors team. Judging by the way how the Juniors whipped the Freshmen in the previous game, you’d think that the Sophies wouldn’t stand a chance against the Seniors. But lo and behold, what was supposed to be expected, came out to be the exact opposite. Similar to the Dream Match scenario, what was supposed to be, the exact opposite was the one that was being played out. By the end of the first half, the smaller and relatively scrawnier Sophomores held an almost insurmountable 21-point lead against the frustrated Seniors.
Pulling a rabbit out of their jerseys
But it doesn’t end there. During the third quarter, the Seniors staged a valiant run that breached the defenses of the Sophies and came out smoking to grab the lead going into the final and penultimate canto. The Sophies, epitomizing the true and great spirit of the underdogs, decided to face their fears and engaged the Seniors in a searing exchange of baskets. Eventually, it all boiled down to the final two minutes of the game. I don’t know what they placed in their water bottles but the Sophomores came out as the ones who bucked the odds and played with heart and determination. In the end, it was the Sophies who came out the victor. Just like Manny, they kept their faith (you could see them huddling in between time outs saying a little prayer) believed in themselves and faced the odds head on.
These situations just go to show that if they can do it, how much more that we, members of a leadership development organization, could do it ourselves? We should always be ever ready to face the odds and never buckle under the pressure. If we decide to go into something, we should be sure of the reasons why we decided to go into that. Because if our reasons and our motivations are steeled in a rock-solid base, we will never be afraid to face the odds, no matter how insurmountable they can be.
Because just like what Kobe Bryant said…If you don’t believe in yourself, nobody will.
Advance Merry Christmas everyone. Disclaimer: I do not claim to have found the formula for GENUINE and EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP nor do I claim to be a genuine and effective leader though I sincerely seek to be one. This column is my quest towards being a genuine and effective leader and my insights from my JCI experiences that would hopefully lead me there. Let me hear your thoughts too by leaving a comment here.
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