Leadership In Adversity
Life is complicated. Things don’t always go the way we expect, much less the way we want. Yet, it is often adversity that brings out our best leadership qualities.
For Steve, that moment came in early October when his wife Ann had a serious accident resulting in a brain injury. As she drifted into unconsciousness while waiting in the emergency room, he created a sense of urgency and got the doctors focused on her needs. When her brain swelled and hemorrhaged, he was her advocate for getting the necessary care and procedures.
As emotions ran high and minutes counted, he retained presence of mind, asked good questions and made key decisions. He mobilized his network of contacts to determine the best options for care. He led the charge in the mission to do everything humanly possible to help Ann.
Over the following weeks, he showed up every day, making the 2-3 hour round trip to the neural intensive care unit and subsequently the rehab facility. He expressed appreciation for the care provided by the medical team, and helped them see Ann as a person not just another patient. He rallied their three children and kept the household running, preserving as much normal daily routine as possible and accepting help from friends and family.
At every step, he has shown love, compassion, patience and perseverance. He has communicated in a way that creates a virtuous circle, connecting people across thousands of miles who care about Ann and her family through a Caring Bridge site.
Steve is my brother-in-law and clearly, my sister married exceptionally well. I know he would say he is just doing what needs to be done, and that it is no less than what Ann would do for him if the situation were reversed.
This, in fact, is the essence of leadership. It is about doing the right thing even when difficult, and especially when no one is looking, and showing the way forward and being present for those who count on you. It is also about facing up to challenges, making the critical decisions and drawing on the broader community for strength. In doing so, he has also given others strength and reminded us of the caring and compassion that we humans are capable of and depend on.
We applaud Steve for showing such leadership in a time of adversity, and there is much to learn from his great example. Steve, know that we are all with you as you lead the way.
I like
We often are faced with difficult situations in leadership positions. All eyes tend to be on you watching your reactions or speculating on how you are going to react.
I think of the tragic situation we faced at CHS. A student fell victim to a horrific act of domestic violence. The entire school was in schock. The media, press and outside agencies smothered CHS. Everyone looked to me. My first instincts were to take care of the kids. When the death of Laura was confirmed I sent the staff to classrooms, out in the hall, any where in the building that there were kids. We comforted, listened, and allowed them to grieve any way they wanted. In the upcoming days I had to deal with situations I had never dealt with before. The next morning the press greeted me in front of school. I was still worried about our kids. I gave the press very strict parameters and asked them to respect our kids. Our kids wanted to create a memorial outside in the student lot. I said bring it inside in to the Atrium at the front of our building. They created a memorial that stayed up until the end of the school year. Whatever, the kids wanted we did regardless of what we as adults thought. Laura was a huge American Idol fan. The kids wanted to contact the producer of the show and ask if they would give Laura’s family a “Golden Ticket” and say something on the show about domestic violence. By luck We had a parent who had a connection to the show. Believe it or not it happened. The kids started a domestic violence awareness campaign raising money for WINGS and for the family. They wanted to have a memorial celebration for Laura’s family. We did. We presented the family a check for 19,000 dollars all raised by the kids. I remember the first responders coming to the school to celebrate the life of Laura . The entire community came together. What I learned was to follow the lead of the kids. The tragedy impacted the entire school and community.By listening to the voices of kids we came out stronger.
Tim, many thanks for sharing this story of leadership in adversity. I love your message for leaders, which is about knowing what is at the heart of the matter and focusing everyone/everything on this unifying mission. In this case, it was taking care of, listening to and following the lead of the kids, and the results were outstanding. Well done!