Synergos Retreat

Our Co-Founder, Saleha Antulay attended the Synergos Authentic Leadership Retreat on the 19th - 22nd of September, 2024 at The Tamara, Coorg - having started AAF with her brother, our co-founder, Daanish Antulay in memory of their late father, not long before this. As a new organization, AAF was still trying to understand and identify the role that it would play, and the impact that it could co-create with other stakeholders such as the communities, the non-profits and the funders, to help the most marginalized communities break out of the poverty cycle.

This Retreat came at the perfect time as they were answering these critical questions. The overall experience was energizing, insightful and a great opportunity to connect with and learn from some wonderful people doing meaningful work in the sector.

The various sessions she participated in, helped Saleha think about the kind of leader she would like to be and the culture and ethos she wanted to establish, as AAF brought more people into the organization. The reflective exercises helped understand how important it is to slow down, connect with oneself and nature - which is a luxury in an excessively fast-paced and busy life. The place selected was the perfect setting to conduct such workshops - against the soothing sounds of leaves rustling, birds chirping and cascading waterfalls.

Using art and creativity to help visualize these answers, the participants were able to identify their place in the world at large, their vision for the future, the world they believe they can build together, and finally, the role they play as leaders - a fun yet therapeutic experience.

The workshops helped them understand more elements of the Bridging Leadership Style they aspire to, that focuses on creating and sustaining effective working relationships among key partners and stakeholders in an organization. By “bridging” or adapting to different perspectives, needs and opinions of various stakeholders, a common agenda can begin to be developed and shared, that solves identified problems and has more far-reaching impact. This, coupled with a group exercise of what all the attendees thought was a good leader, aligned beautifully, demonstrating how important it is to practice such a leadership style. While each of them had their individual aspirations and goals, the common theme was betterment of society and thus, the elements of Bridging Leadership would help achieve collaborative success for the future.