“Fältman is a magician!” Voices filled with admiration and joy ripple through the crowd—seasonal workers, blacksmiths, farmers, lumberjacks, children, and other onlookers gathered to watch the spectacle that takes place every summer at Högestad Castle. Moments later, the slender silhouette of Erik Fältman appears, riding a Husqvarna motorcycle. Behind him, a hundred cows follow the pace he sets.
Normally, it would take at least ten or fifteen people to round up the herd from the fields and guide them to the stables for milking, yet he did it all alone. He was responsible for managing the work of some 40 permanent employees and just as many seasonal workers. He assigned tasks related to the care and use of around 30 horses and 200 cows, as well as the cultivation of crops across the 10,000 hectares of land owned by the trust for which he worked. The work was done manually, combining human and animal strength. Enforcing strict military discipline, Fältman assigned the tasks and objectives for which the workers were paid. Work continued every day except Sundays.
As he reminisces about those times, the spark of his childhood—now more than seventy years past—lights up the eyes of Sven Erik, Erik’s son; that vitality breathes life into his kind face, which still holds a mischievous, creative spirit. He holds a black-and-white photograph between his long fingers. In it, his father and brother are seated on the Husqvarna. The mere act of riding the motorcycle turned any ordinary day into something truly special. As he gazes at the photo, he reveals the “secret” of Fältman the magician—his father.
During the spring and summer, when the cows grazed outdoors, it took a large number of people to bring them back to the stables for milking. To everyone’s disbelief, Erik Fältman did it all on his own.
“My father used to talk to the cows.”
He did it year-round, but especially in the summer, when he would go out to watch them grazing in the pasture. Calmly and serenely, he would identify a couple of the leaders—the ones that seemed to command the most authority within the herd. Little by little, day after day, he would talk to them, scratch them, and sometimes offer them treats. Eventually, his mere appearance in the field was enough to make them come to him. From there, the rest was easy: one day, he got on his motorcycle and, setting a leisurely pace, drove along the path toward the barns, followed by his “friends” and the rest of the herd.
He did everything calmly. He would listen, then act. And this was the greatest lesson he passed on to his son.
Listen. Plan. Act. These are the three phases Sven Erik employed throughout his career. They helped him build a successful business career in the region. Yet none of this would have mattered without the patience, affection, clarity, curiosity, interest, and determination to build and nurture relationships. Whether dealing with animals or humans, the priority is always to nurture the relationship.
This was an extract from Los delfines de Östersund, one of the chapters in Conectar los puntos, Inventar lo possible. Apart from my father-in-law’s father’s story, the chapter talks about Gregory Bateson’s visit to the dolphin training facility and the European success of Swedish 4th-tier Östersund football club led by an anonymous English coach.
What they all had in common and what joins their dots is a simple and yet often forgotten truth: hearts lead hearts. A leader’s heart is leadership’s main tool. It creates space that attracts attention, and we all know that energy flows where attention goes. That is why without a pure heart there is no leadership. Without it, cows are gathered by many men, dolphins don’t do the tricks, and teams don’t win matches.
AI can learn most of the processes, instructions, and strategies, but good leaders will always keep an important advantage: to lead from the heart, one needs a heart.
Graham Porter, the anonymous football coach I wrote about in 2018, is the master-heart behind the revival of the Swedish national football team. A man who took over 4th-division Östersund not only into the first division but also to the Europa League wanted to «turn footballers into open-minded men, educate them to be part of the community; I want to take them out of their comfort zone and teach them to trust their teammates». He did it back then, and he keeps on doing it today. He puts smiles on footballers’ faces, and happy faces turn into goals and victories.
Yes, please, try this at home, in the office, on the street… lead with heart everywhere you go. Because, after all, a smile is the shortest distance between two people (Victor Borge) and we don’t smile because we are happy; we are happy because we smile (William James).
And that’s one of the main tools we use in social farming.
Smiles are the main elements in the healthy social soil.
