In case you missed it, Ubuntelligence is generally defined as the “ability and courage to seek out and connect to other, seemingly different, fellow human beings. It is about establishing meaningful connections with others, within given timelines, without due regard for individual or personal gain. It focuses on collective value in the short, medium and long-term basis. It combines Ubuntu attributes and commonsense intelligence of putting others before our selfish interests. Ubuntelligence is inherently based on selflessness and service”.
I have put together a set of 10 questions as part of a preliminary self-test for Ubuntu Intelligence preparedness. Clearly all the smart M&G Thought Leaders will ace it like the very few matriculants did their exams recently. But it’s not that kind of test. Looking at the list below I’ve been saying to myself: Can you allow yourself to explore openly your perceptions and assumptions about your own world and worldview, without undue exposure? My answer has been a loud: Why not?! As you go through the list, note your own answers or write them down for yourself if you have the time and space. No pressure. In brackets after each question you will find selected early responses from a mini-survey carried out among a cross-section of diverse individuals. They are indicative of sentiments out there, but not to be taken literally or as conclusive. Here goes:
1. Deep within me, do I feel that I have the capacity and courage to step out of my comfort zones mentally and emotionally to connect with strangers? Do I know that I have comfort zones? (Sure, I do, and I have the courage to shift and I do it all the time. It is easy and it’s fun. My couch is my comfort zone, beer mug and remote control in hand! Do I need to change anything really? What comfort zones? This is utter rubbish! I love myself as I am. Who made you the Ubuntu judge? How old are you again?)
2. Is it really possible to change my old patterns and habits of relating to others? (No. Yes. Whatever. I do it all the time. If I did not change my patterns and habits, I’d be dead.)
3. Am I aware of others’ comfort zones too? We all have them. (Nope. Who cares?)
4. Am I too terrified of changing my ways and patterns? (Try me. Am no chicken, not terrified. Just not interested. Done that, got the bruises. Sounds like my ex-wife.)
5. What will happen if/when I allow a new norm to emerge in how I relate to myself and to others? (Chance to grow. I’ll avoid the laager mentality. Must protect my culture.)
6. What is the risk of my making myself more vulnerable by stepping out to engage strangers and connect with them … safely? (Culture erosion. Language depletion. Getting swamped. I think the world has become too brown already. Deeper connections. Peace at last.)
7. Am I able to see my triggers for what they are, such as, for example, what goes on in my mind when I see the words Malema, DA, communist, transformation, BEE or ubuntu? What do I do when I am triggered: do I immediately shut down mentally and move on to the next blog or explore it? (Hmmm? People can take themselves way too seriously sometimes. Cannot see the triggers, but can see the impact.)
8. Do I have it in me to encourage young people to look at the world through their own eyes and not lend them my already tainted lenses? (Hmmm, do-able. Tough one. My “eyes” are hand-me-downs, they must be passed on, it is called tradition silly!)
9. Do I have the courage to re-invent myself in a positive manner that lets the sun shine in — into the dark recesses of my psyche and my mindsets that are mainly doom and gloom? (Yep, willing to try. Too old for this. What does it help? Doing it right now, refreshing.)
10. Finally, to use a computer software example, is my operating system (worldview and perceptions) upgradeable to become a better version of me, with a real chance to see things differently, afresh, or better than I currently do? Or is it frozen in time? (It is alive with possibility!)
These are just sample test questions, for kicks. The full test will include observed interactions with others and should take several days to verify authenticity of engagement and ability to make real connections with others.
So what’s the fuss with this connectedness thing? It would be great for the ideals of nation-building. I hear blah blah blah. No harm trying to learn a new language while at it. How many of us have learned a new language since school? It’s a great life-skill. I’m sure Rod speaks good Mandarin in Shanghai by now. It is a good personal asset, especially seeing that almost everything today comes from China.
Yes, visit the township and have a drink or two, but know where to go and when. It’s a major mindset shift this Ubuntelligence thing … If you’re brave enough, people are actually friendlier than we often think they are. It is our own fear that keeps us pinned down; it is all a matter of approach.
And, by the way, authentic Ubuntelligence connecting does not include people going to Australia for a week and then coming back home and calling everyone “mate” in a funny Aussie accent. That’s fake, mate. It doesn’t count.
I think that Ubuntelligence should be developed and used to screen all potential public representatives, especially politicians. No Ubuntelligence, forget about public office, period. It could even be a powerful weapon against rampant corruption. If you are too self-serving, go find another job elsewhere, another planet maybe.
During the fast-approaching Fifa World Cup, if you’re not friendly to foreign visitors (especially from the rest of Africa) then you’re not a real African yourself. Warmth, friendliness, a welcoming attitude and being humane and approachable, is what this is about, and it is an inside job. It starts from within, with deep introspection. Who am I? What really defines me?
If I cannot see the other for who they are and accept them as such then what am I doing here?
I like your concept of ubuntelligence. I have lived in a situation for the last 4 years that came about quite unintentionally and that has forced me to consider all those questions you ask and more. How? Simply go and live in a neighbourhood where you have just about all the other cultures to be found in Africa, but your own, living around you. Being brought up to consider all races and cultures different but equal did not prepare me for the experience even though it gave me a better chance to become a part of my neighbourhood.
The most important thing I discovered is that the more people change, the more they stay the same. My meaning? You get similar types of people in all cultures and races. Those labels do not change what kind of person you are.
Ubuntu will happen when people look at who people are and not blind themselves with another’s habits or skin colour, or excuse their own unsocial behaviour by hiding behind their own colour/culture/language.
Interesting thought.
Do not get what to do next. Do you invite me to take the test??
European descent, married a “white” SA lady (with Bantu/bushman in her DNA), slept with black ladies and was robbed by black men, have some horrible racist white friends and still cannot understand people when they live out their prejudices without going out and look for themselves.
As a matter of interest: did you yourself do the test ??
Interesting take X Cepting.
Tell me something: what do you think makes it difficult for people to accept the concept of Ubuntu and work with something different from their beaten paths of understanding?
If you were to train a group of people on the vitues of ubuntu, what would you focus on and what would you not leave out?
There is always room to learn and grow…
Thanks for sharing
Well I can say with due Authority that I do not need to go to the local township for experience it happens in my own neighbourhood.
Sorry the word invention and concept that others must change to suit the African condition is BS in the extreme.
Being polite and having consideration for others is what makes the difference. Unfortunately those in my new township have never learned that. Simple courtesy is a swear word.
You have to live with it daily to understand that oil and water cannot mix without a catalyst. That catalyst has to be anything but an idealist concept. Respect for others goes a long way.
I really enjoyed your article…I wish there was a way to convince folk that you are not being “disloyal” if you make an effort to embrace change. Its actually quite easy to think of people as people first….and leave colour and political affiliations on the back burner. Try it!..You have nothing to lose but fear. But those in the media spotlight (and we know who they are!) need to be brought to book for making devisive statements.
I am unlikely to have any contact whatsoever with anyone visiting SA to watch a World Cup match. Now there’s a thought…
The non-word ‘ubuntelligence’ does not have a ‘general definition’ since it first appeared in the above article and therefore is nothing but a silly contrivance.
There is no need to Africanise ‘decency, politeness, consideration, brotherly love”, to authenticate the South African experience of non-racist behaviour towards one another. Just apply yourself to ‘decency, politeness, consideration, and brotherly love towards your fellow man and woman.
Why complicate a very simple matter with pseodo-gobbledegook that makes the poor white housewife feel that she should now seek out ubuntelligence workshops between yoga and hairdresser?
lets just try facts…..
10 Years of shack fires and floodsw
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=t5D4WZU6UKBQ1Y3LaGt3g6Q&output=html
where is it that we fail the Ubuntelligence test.
why right here – please zoom in
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http:%2F%2Fbbs.keyhole.com%2Fubb%2Fdownload.php%3FNumber%3D1151467&t=k&om=1&ie=UTF8&ll=-33.985502,18.566208&spn=0.371217,0.64064&z=11
Alright, I get it. Dont Afrikanise common decency and respect for others, and please lets not make people feel inadequate. Sure. Got it.
Hugh Robinson, I missed your point, exactly what is the oil and water that does not mix? Is it Black and White or local and foreign. As far as I know when Black and White mix they produce really great results in the shade of Brown. But again, you probably meant something else…
Larry, I’m with you. No harm exploring new boundaries. Its not really about the term of Ubuntelligence, its about the personal work that each one of us does in our personal space… The thoughts and ideas about making this a better world…
What to do next: do some serious introspection about how you personally impact your world, and what kind of impact you want to leave behind after taking your last breath. Its not an ego thing, its a deeply humane journey.
Yes, enjoy the 2010 World Cup, its only a month-long event. Then what? The spotlight and focus of the greater part of the world will be on us. Lets use it to impact the world better. Is that so hard? Whats the harm in going out to the Fan Parks or stadia and meeting foreigners, and celebrating humanity and having fun with others. Imagine and actually resisting saying anything nasty or negative… for a whole day nogal! Worth celebrating. Yes, not everytone is virulently negative.
Positive impact…
ThoughtLeader (TL) works best when people attempt to meaningfully engage with each other’s differences and similarities, when it is used as a forum that simultaneously invites critique of how we collectively co-construct and live as a society, acknowledge and confront ‘negativity’ and to freely share that to which we aspire, or ’positivity’. Dumisani, your posts consistently honor what real TL is about. Your ‘Ubuntelligence’ proposal makes good practical sense and is worth to be explored to the max…starting with those who are ready for this. And, let’s ‘not confuse the finger for the moon’ in what Dumi offers us…