An Invitation to Make Conscious Choices
In conversation with rabbi Eitan Galam.
Eitan Galam is living a full life. A father of six, he is a digital entrepreneur, and rabbi of one of the largest communities in Tel Aviv, where he has also founded a community centre. Previously, Eitan ran a hedge fund between Israel and New York, and worked in blockchain for a few years. In other words, as a leader, he understands both systems and ecosystems and is committed to utilising all of his talent in the service of his communities.
Tusker Club - You introduce yourself as ‘husband, father, rabbi and entrepreneur’. You are a former Wall Street executive, you created a hedge fund and recently a marketing start-up, all whilst leading a community centre in Tel Aviv. Tell us what drives you.
Eitan Galam - I have always liked to build things up. Whether it is a company, a centre, an app, a piece of furniture, or even cooking… there is almost something divine in creating things that will benefit others.
Because I am involved in many projects, people know me for different reasons. By introducing myself as a ‘husband, father, rabbi and entrepreneur’, I am committing to each role and aim to be present fully for the people who see me in that role.
Let me take an example: for the longest time, I resisted smart phones. Now that I have one, whenever I turn it on, I see 20 messages from business partners, clients, divorced couples, or my wife reminding me to go grocery shopping. To achieve work-life balance, perform well, and honour my responsibilities, I have installed messenger apps on a dedicated phone, which I leave at work.
I am committed to living a full life, not just a busy one, and for that, I need to get organised!
TC - You are also known to translate learnings from the Torah to business situations via torah.fr. On the importance of rituals, what would you say?
EG - In Judaism, our spiritual and secular lives are deeply intertwined. Having interviewed many business executives and entrepreneurs, I realised that people know what is good, virtuous, or important to them. The challenge is how to apply those principles and translate them to daily situations. With torah.fr, we revisit classic business cases through learnings from the Torah and Talmud.
Let me give you an example. There is a saying in the Torah that says one cannot use a donkey and a cow at the same time to pull a cart. Why? For starters, if they are perfectly able on their own, donkeys and cows don’t walk at the same pace. Put them side by side, the cow will find the donkey too slow, and the donkey will feel like a failure. What’s more, the cow is a ruminating mammal. The donkey may infer that the cow is better fed, whereas it’s not necessarily true. I won’t go into details, but one can already see the many applications of this saying to HR situations in business.
When it comes to rituals, Judaism is not outdone! Indeed, many daily practices are ritualised in our religion. It makes our lives easier because it defines what is possible. Rituals make us more productive. Think of it like the frame of a painting: one can paint what one wants within it, but if you are an artist, you know it is easier to paint within a frame than on an open canvass!
TC - In an organisation, who is entitled to establish and manage rituals?
EG - As a rabbi and an executive, I have reflected a lot about this question. Deciding who is entitled to establish and manage rituals is a good question, and if I were to take a short cut, I would say it is the leader of the organisation. However, what really matters is that roles and responsibilities are clear to everyone. It empowers people and prevents frustration. When rules are clear and expectations set, one is free to accept them or not.
On the other hand, those entitled to establish and manage rituals need to own this role fully. Indeed, in the Book of Proverbs, King Solomon says that whoever forgives when they need to judge will judge when they need to forgive. Hence, establishing rituals requires a reciprocal commitment from the group to the leader and the leader to the group.
TC - One may think that rituals can exclude more than they include, for you need to be an insider to benefit from them. What would you say to those people?
EG - When establishing rituals, it is important to be clear on their function and what it is we are trying to achieve through them. Only then can people decide if they are aligned with the objective and comfortable with the practice and therefore consciously follow rituals or decide to adopt others.
For instance, almost everyone is now working from home from time to time. Inevitably, leaders have preferences and expectations regarding the working style of their teams. By not communicating them clearly and by not establishing ground rules and rituals, they bear the risk of mutual frustrations with employees who would have other working habits, irrespective of how they perform.
Again, clear rituals empower people when they embody a mutual commitment (employees can communicate clearly on their habits and expectations too during dedicated and possibly facilitated sessions). In addition, one shouldn’t judge alternative practices. Everyone can decide consciously what works for them and as a leader, your responsibility is to give this opportunity to your team.
TC - Finally, how can organisations leverage the holiday season, without excluding communities with different practices?
EG - In Israel, Rosh Hashanna, the New Year, kicks off a relatively long holiday season of almost a month. The lunar calendar means that it falls in September most of the time, i.e., right after August when pretty much the entire world hits pause. We can either lament about that or take it as an invitation to reflect and invest time in non-productive activities.
The same goes for organisations: non-observant staff can use the holidays to reflect on their practice and invest time in long-term thinking. Every leader needs to manage consciously this ‘back and forth’ between action and reflection. The holiday season is an invitation to do so.
Interview by Baptiste Raymond - 12/2022.