SIXTEEN participants from Brunei Shell Petroleum’s Energy Business Academy (EBA), Institute of Brunei Technical Education (IBTE), entrepreneurs and members of the public completed and graduated from the LiveWIRE Leadership Camp programme held at the Trandie Marina Resort in the Temburong District from July 27-29.
The three-day camp was an exploration programme aimed at inculcating leadership values within individuals and delved into an individual’s positive and negative traits through a self-assessment process.
Based on the concept of ‘transforming’ a person rather than ‘changing’ them, the leadership training programme hoped to create a ‘Community of Practice’ approach, according to LiveWIRE Brunei Programme Director and Lead Facilitator for the Leadership Camp programme Pengiran Redzuan bin Pengiran Haji Abbas.
Pengiran Redzuan added that the programme was also aimed at eliminating the Bruneian mindset of malas ku ingau or ‘I couldn’t care less’ attitude. “If Bruneian leaders are like that, then their followers will be fearful,” he said. “(At the camp), we don’t try to change people since people (by nature) don’t want to change. So instead we attempt to transform them,” added Pengiran Redzuan who emphasised the concept of unity among the participants.
During the camp, the participants were exposed to the natural elements and explored the characteristics that make a leader through theoretical and practical sessions spaced out during the ‘55 hours away from home’, as LiveWIRE referred to it.
In the theoretical sessions, Pengiran Redzuan and LiveWIRE Senior Business Counsellor Mohd Fadhilullah Tudun bin Haji Hassan shared with the participants renowned psychological concepts such as Joseph Luft and Harry Ingham’s Johari Window and Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. The participants were asked to look back into situations in their respective pasts, where they could apply such concepts into practice in the future.
Meanwhile, the practical session included a day-long jungle trekking and obstacle course where participants were observed by supervisors on how well they could lead and motivate others as well as how they performed as team players. “A good leader needs to be a good follower as well,” Pengiran Redzuan added.
During the trekking, experienced guides were also on hand to teach the participants the various aspects of survival in Brunei’s rainforest. At the end of these sessions, the participants were assessed on their qualities by the supervisors and how these qualities varied to the qualities that the participants thought they had during the self-assessment session. After discussing with their individual groups, the participants will then declare the positive traits that they will aim to work towards achieving.
Nur Aziilah binti Md Sofri from IBTE recommended the Leadership Camp programme as a tool for understanding people and oneself. “It allows us to frame our perspective of life based on time management and values,” she said.
Another participant of the camp, Edna Ghani said the programme is insightful. “I’ve learnt that there is always room for improvement, and that transformation is a process. To realise and accept your negativities is a breakthrough. Once you own that then you know which areas to improve on. Being grateful is the key learning experience for me from the camp.”
An EBA participant Michael Shim said, “The programme allows us to self-evaluate and in learning to become better leaders.”
Pengiran Redzuan said he chose Temburong for the leadership camp because he wanted to bring participants into a ‘different environment’, while appreciating the natural beauty of Temburong.
A jungle trekking session was held on the second day at Sungai Kudan.
LiveWIRE Brunei is part of an international organisation operating in over 21 countries. LiveWIRE is an organisation fully sponsored and is the social investment flagship of Brunei Shell Petroleum Company Sdn Bhd, which aims at contributing to the Brunei community by raising consciousness on the needs to diversify the country’s economy via participating in business activity.
LiveWIRE Brunei was established in 2001 with the aim of introducing, encouraging and assisting young Bruneians to entrepreneurship by providing them access to resources and advice on starting a business as a career option, and provides a mentoring programme for young entrepreneurs to develop skills to manage a new business.