Week 1, Chris on Leadership
Leadership
This was a tough one for me. Sometimes, I have a bit of a tainted view on leadership. Society sometimes admires leaders that possess qualities that I have trouble identifying with. For example, few would argue that General Patton was a poor leader. He was fantastic at what he did. But in my eyes, that came at a cost. Troops under his command often commented how uncompassionate he was. Some troops remarking about Patton’s nickname, “Old Blood and Guts” said that, “they were our blood and guts”. I understand that in war it is difficult to find compassion, but it’s a quality I admire.
So in order to find my “leader” I’ve had to create a type of “Frankenstein” leader. I’ve taken some of the people that truly inspire me and merged them into one giant MEGA LEADER! Muahahah…ok, maybe that was a little bit of an exaggeration. Still, finding one person that captured all that I admire in a leader was difficult. It came down to me asking myself the question, “whom would I follow”.
It came down to two people that I admire deeply. They both have qualities that I admire, are similar in some ways, and drastically different in others; Bruce Lee and Carl Sagan. But Chris! Why these two are almost identical! Maybe so, but I’ll just illustrate some of the qualities I love.
Bruce Lee was one of my first heroes. It started at a very young age and for the reasons you might imagine. This tiny little man with blinding speed could take on the world according to the movies. At a young age, I had no idea of fight choreography, additional takes, or unused footage. To me, it was magical. It wasn’t until much later that I discovered the beauty beyond his command of the physical.
Bruce Lee was deeply in love with philosophy. He had a genuine love for the pursuit of truth; a love he tried to work into every aspect of life from personal relationships to the martial arts he was famous for. He was faced with obstacle after obstacle. He was not fully accepted by America because he was Asian, and not fully accepted by Asia because of what he taught to Americans. He overcame this through demonstrating that beauty is not exclusive to one culture. He was able to transcend fear through truth and understanding. I love that quality. I think that understanding is something that doesn’t get enough attention when it comes to leadership.
The second person is one that I can’t imagine my life without, and possessed one amazing leadership quality I admire is Carl Sagan. I have a deep love of science. But, that doesn’t always go over so well when you are surrounded by people who see science as the enemy. I grew up in a pretty religious family. I wasn’t really allowed to ask “why” that often when it came to things I wanted to understand. I can remember asking about how the sun worked and was told it was, “because that’s what god wanted.” Well, I didn’t accept that. I knew there must be more. But every time it seemed to end in contention, frustration; I just couldn’t seem to satisfy my need for knowledge and keep honest and open relationships. But then I started to watch “Cosmos.”
I saw Carl Sagan illustrate deep concepts about life, our universe, our existence…. all in a way that was completely non-confrontational. Although he had the same love of science I did, he also seemed to possess a compassionate understanding of what it meant to be human. He wasn’t arrogant, he was considerate. He didn’t look down on religion or belief; he just promoted science as a better way to understand our place in the universe. I loved him instantly.
I think that a leader needs to be confident of his or her position but also open enough to understand those who may not share his or her thoughts. A leader needs to listen, consider all possibilities, and move forward based on the best evidence regardless of personal feelings. I respect that.
I know that I will never approach Bruce Lee’s physical prowess. I know that Carl Sagan’s intellect exceeds my own. But I can honestly say that everyday I try to emulate some of the qualities of these men who are such an inspiration to me.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
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Cricket Johnson
Chris -
I think you summed up what most people have to do when finding their own leadership style. They have to be able to take the great qualities from various leaders throughout their lives and apply them, but also learn from those leaders mistakes as well.
I enjoyed learning about your role models...what great ones and great reasons too!! I loved your comment about a leader needing to be confident of his/her position but also open enough to understand those who may not share his/her beliefs, so true!!
You mentioned Patton, in the beginning, and referred to his lack of compassion. I have to wonder that in the field of battle, in the circumstances that he often found himself having to make judgments in - if compassion might have been something that would have been more harmful than beneficial in the long run? Do you think that he probably had to move forward based on the best evidence regardless of his personal feelings? I'm thinking he had to and he probably had to seem detached or cold just to keep his sanity. I can't imagine. Chris - really cool insight into your motivation and leadership style - thanks for sharing!
Sunday, February 5, 2012 - 09:43 AM
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