Sometimes leadership requires making hard decisions and choosing a path that goes against the norm. Leadership takes courage. Although I’ve come across many instances where I had to exercise my “courage muscle,” one story stands out.
In the mental health center where I currently lead, I met a young man who had a questionable background. Only 21, James* had earned his college degree, but he had also earned a felony record after making a bad decision that involved selling drugs. James’ parole officer thought employing him was too great a risk. The job gave James access to client information (those who were in treatment for addiction to drugs) and the parole officer feared that with James’ past record, he might be inclined to sell drugs to clients.
I was outraged, “The conditions of his parole required him to be working and stay out of trouble. Now he’s fulfilling all those conditions, but they’re still not going to let him work here? He exemplifies everything we want from people reentering the community after a problem with the law. It makes no sense to terminate him; he’s an excellent employee. You are going against everything you are encouraging him to do, by trying to take his job.”
I had the courage to challenge the decision of the parole officer, even though it meant the potential loss of a major contract with the Department of Justice worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. But I knew it was the right thing to do. So I used that courage to persuade a number of powerful people to give James a second chance.
Today, James is gainfully employed and giving back to the community.
When I look back on that story, I realize that courage isn’t something that just happens. As I alluded to at the top of this post, courage is a lot like a muscle. To have strong courage through your leadership challenges, you must develop the attitude, skill and ability to use it.
Here are five attitudes that have helped me develop my courage muscle:
- Know yourself. It’s difficult to have courage when you’re unclear of your guiding values and principles. What do you stand for? Being attuned to who you are is like the foundation of a house. It holds you firm when the demands of leadership challenge you.
- Do what’s right, not what feels good. Often, courage means making uncomfortable choices. A difficult decision won’t always feel good in the moment, but if you’re connected with your principles then you’ll know the right course of action. Always remember to maintain an ethical posture in these moments.
- Be flexible and open to change. If you find yourself saying, “But, we’ve always done it this way,” then you may really be responding to fear of change. Fear is the opposite of courage. Have the courage to corrupt the norm if it means a better outcome.
- Accept criticism. Naysayers abound, especially when faced with a leadership challenge. Listen to the critics, they may have a valid perspective on the situation. But always return to what’s right, both from an ethics and principles standpoint, and then choose.
- Be willing to admit mistakes. There have been times when I courageously made what I thought was the best decision, and I was dead wrong. I’m human. Mistakes are part of the territory and I’m willing to admit when I’m wrong. Those wrong turns are learning opportunities to be savored! Embrace them and choose to do differently next time.
* Although the name has been changed for this post, the story is real.
