The female associate judge in the story kept on emphasizing that the poor and less privileged in court hearings are powerless. She was very adamant to listen well to the poor's plea, and when a suspect came from a rich family, she has the tendency to think that they are mostly at the advantage. However, in one session, the rich suspect was given a verdict of guilty for raping a young lady, even if the witnesses' statements were not strong. When the suspect heard the verdict that he would be spending time behind bars, he collapsed. The associate judge was astounded to see him falling. She had never seen a man fall or collapse like that before.
The next scene was inside the office of the presiding judge. He talked to the lady associate judge. He said that he understands her compassion towards the poor. But there is something that they, as judges, should not forget when they do their job. That is, the most powerful person inside the courtroom are they, the judges. And justice should serve the truth and not be biased whatever is the person's stature in life. Their understanding and decisions can cause the life of any man, and thus they should take their duty carefully and seriously.
I tried to look at my work as a trainer and a consultant closely, and asked myself, what would be the impact of my job to the people who listen to my words. I say it can make them and break them depending on how they will use it in their work-life. Thus, I have to be very conscientious in sharing accurate information and answering the questions of every participant.
Some may not be able to understand why teachers and professors are so strict. But they who listen well and try to understand the motive behind has higher chances of success compared to those who take the teachings lightly. I say this because I am lucky enough to meet mentors (from MESEDEV2) who are really passionate in teaching us. The amount of work and studies they had given us showed the amount of trust that we would do our job as students, which is to study well.
At work, we mentor our employees and we weed them by letting them go through the processes. If you are a coach or a mentor, don't feel bad if your mentee was not able to understand your actions and intentions when you train them. We, as mentors, continue to find people who needed our help. And when they come, share with them the lessons (in life) that you can give them. In the end, the reward would be you will have no regrets and you can move on.
There is one tool we have that can cut and can save as trainers or teachers. That tool is our tongue. We have to manage our thoughts and words, by thinking if what we would say is beneficial to our listeners. Just like in the story of Ms. Hammurabi, let us always remember that when our students open their ears and mind to listen, they have given us their trust. It is then our responsibility to say the right thing, as well as listen well to what they are not saying. We need to continue growing and learning so that we will have something to teach and share.
Thank you for reading today's blog entry. Please feel free to share your thoughts.
