Peter Waddup, CEO - The Leprosy Mission Great Britain

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The Leprosy Mission works across diverse cultures, time zones and political systems. As the CEO, not only do I have the privilege of heading up a brilliant UK team, but I’m so thankful that I also work alongside incredible people overseas.

Leadership is always a balancing act of vision, listening, learning and action. I’m still on that journey, and I don’t always get it right. But I have learnt to listen more than I speak, and I depend on the knowledge of Leprosy Mission teams across Africa and Asia. These dedicated people understand culture and needs far better than anyone else.

Sometimes I have to make tough decisions with the team. When you're working to help some of the poorest people on the planet, leadership becomes a calling. A test of not only your skills but your humanity too. Resources are finite, and when you want to help each and every person affected by leprosy, decisions are sometimes painful.

It's also increasingly becoming a case of learning to expect the unexpected. With climate change tightening its grip on Asia and Africa, extreme weather events are becoming the norm. How can we help the people we serve to better protect themselves from inevitable drought, flooding and cyclones?

What a blessing it is then, to have such great counterparts around the world. Just recently we had the amazing @Bunmi Oluto with us in the office. Bunmi is Nigerian, but was called to serve in Niger, and heads up The Leprosy Mission in the country. It was a real eye-opener to hear about the conditions in which he and his team work. Desperate poverty, disease, drought, and famine. Few resources and a constant battle to find, cure and rebuild the lives of people who have leprosy. His resilience and determination were a lesson to me. It’s helped me to understand too that his priorities may be different to mine, and to have grace as we work together.

I'm now taking a break from blogging for the next five weeks as I'm on annual leave for the next fortnight. Then I'm delighted to attend the International Leprosy Congress in Bali. I’m really excited to be spending time with organisations made up of persons affected by leprosy. This will be a very special time of listening and learning.

So as an encouragement to anyone struggling with responsibility. It's about showing up, even when it's incredibly hard and you don't have all the answers. It’s about working together with people who know more than you do. It’s about constantly learning.

Me (Peter) with Dr Joydeepa Darlong at Purulia Hospital in West Bengal, India