If you believe as I do,
you are pretty disappointed in what the entertainment industry produces these
days. Let’s face it, if you are over a certain age, you are not in Hollywood’s
demographic! But every once in a while, there is an exception. The
Finest Hours depicts one of the most famous rescues in the history of
the U.S. Coast Guard and left me much to think out loud about in terms of what
leaders must eventually do.
Starring Chris Pine as
Coast Guardsmen Bernie Webber, this real-life adventure is set in the early
1950’s when the tanker SS Pendleton becomes sheared in half during a brutal
nor’easter off Cape Cod. Weber is asked to take a small boat and crew and
attempt a rescue for the surviving tanker crew. The chances of success are slim
and just getting to the ship in the dangerous sea conditions is doubtful.
Weber, who is portrayed as having his own doubts about his abilities and his
own crew’s chances for survival goes out anyway and in the heroic tradition of
the U.S. Coast Guard simply states, “we have to go out, but there is no rule
about coming back.”
Now in all practicality,
you will never face such a dramatic moment in your leadership tenure but this movie
reveals that leaders eventually have to
make the hard decision. The courageous decision. The decision that no one else
seems willing to make. This can include things like:
Initiating a needed change
in your organization or community.
Addressing a toxic person
or culture.
Taking a leap of faith
that will change your life!
Believe it or not you will
have many of such opportunities as your leadership and responsibilities grow.
And in the spirit of “you have to go out but you don't have to come back”,
these times will be your finest hours! The times when you took a breath and stepped
forward into commitment! The times you did the hard thing, the
uncomfortable thing, the risky thing. The time when you did not kick the can
down the road and let it be someone else’s problem.
It has been said there are
no great men or women, just ordinary people placed in extraordinary
circumstances and did what had to be done. So, you see, being a courageous leader
requires no specials skills or abilities, just a WILLINGNESS TO DO WHAT IS
RIGHT!
As always if I can help you and the
people you associate with Get Better, Be Ready and LEAD OUT LOUD, I would
invite you to email me or to visit my website below and see if any of the
training or coaching experiences I offer can provide an impact! Also, as a
bonus, if you go to my Out Loud Strategies website (www.outloudinc.com) and enter your contact information, I will
send you a FREE guide to establishing a mentoring initiative program in your
organization! Such an initiative would be critical to add value to your
organization!
Yours in Leadership,
Bill Faulkner
Principal Consultant –
Out Loud Strategies
Independent Coach,
Speaker, and Trainer with the John Maxwell Team TM
Email = bill@outloudinc.com
Visit our website
at: www.outloudinc.com
Feel free to “LIKE” our
FB Page www.facebook.com/outloudinc
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