Monrovia – Faith Foundation, a charitable, Liberian-based organization, has completed a three-day leadership workshop for 1500 Liberians who are into some forms of leadership in their different walks of life.
Speaking to this newspaper at the close of the workshop on Wednesday, September 6, Mr. Paul Sky Berry, one of two founders, along with his wife, said the three-day lecture series went “very well” as feedbacks from participants were encouraging.
On the selection of the participants, Berry said they had looked for people who have interests in leadership and others who are already working in the areas of leadership.
“We tried to instill more leadership criteria into them; we tried to give them more pieces of information that will help transform the way they do business in their work places, their churches, their communities—whether it is government so that we all can be able to give back to Liberia,” Berry said.
Organizers of the Faith Foundation workshop didn’t charge the participant any fees.
Even though Berry is a Christian and his Faith Foundation, a religious organization, he doesn’t put religion at the core of his leadership trainings. Also, as a prolific writer, he tries not to give religion more credence in his books, which has sold many copies in the United States of America, the United Kingdom, etc.
“I know that I bring people from all walks of life: Muslims, Christians and myself I am a Christian but this doesn’t give me the right to limit Islamic brothers and sisters from being part of the conference.”
The conference, which lasted for three days, had its courses tailored in such a way that the facilitators delivered effectively. Among the different courses was “Situational Leadership,” which Berry thinks will help the participants in their homes, communities and at the grassroots levels.
“This is the just the first of its kind, we are going to bring in more of such programs,” he added.
Berry disclosed that the program was a training of trainers (TOT) and that during the seminar, participants were divided into groups to learn from others and share their stories.
“If we have good leaders in strategic positions, I think Mama Liberia will be proud of us,” Berry added.
He further told this newspaper that during the three days of lectures, they had hoped to achieve “impartation”, understanding and stream lining the various leaders in order to make sure that they understand the concept of leadership.
Berry, who is now relatively successful in what he does, tasted poverty as a child and started out as a little boy breaking stones to sell to make earns meet. “I later realized that stone breaking was not a successful business strategy to make a living, but rather modern slavery in the 21st Century. The Proof of that realization was during the war period in Liberia, where I could no longer sell stones because I had no buyers, as people stopped building homes due to the war. Consequently, as sales dropped tremendously, my life became even more difficult and challenging. I then started working at a construction site, where I carried bricks and other construction materials on my head to make a living.”
The hardship during his childhood did not kill his dream of becoming a leader.
“Faith Foundation promotes leadership empowerment. We have designed programs for professionals wanting to excel at public and private sector leadership,” said Berry.
He promised to provide more financial support to participants, who will go out and further impact others with what they had learned.
Berry, who is an award-winning author, a mentor, a motivational speaker was one of the lecturers at the leadership conference. As an author, he has dedicated to inspire self-improvement and leadership in others. He has shared his story in many parts of the world on what it takes to build success and become a leader. The conference also had lecturers from Sierra Leone and Palestine- Mr. Teddy Foday-Musa, from neighboring Sierra Leone and Mr. Mohammad Sirhan, a Palestinian, who is a physically challenged man. He has not allowed disability to be inability.