“Right is right, even if no one else does it.” – Juliette Gordon Low
How do you handle difficult situations? The topic came up in this space a couple of weeks ago, but, probably because of some things I’ve seen and heard during that time, it’s front of mind again.
As leaders, we’re involved in lots of things. Some of them are “technical” in nature. There are compliance things we’re all part of, or reports we prepare and analyze, or processes we try to improve. Some of those kinds of things are difficult, but those aren’t the things I’m talking about.
I’m talking about “people” things. I’m talking about the situations we find ourselves in where doing what we ought to do is extremely difficult because we’re afraid. The kinds of situations where most people – leaders included – tend to just go along with the crowd. Everybody else is thinking or saying or doing something, so the safe thing to is to join in.
One example that seems to come up repeatedly is something as simple as complaining. It’s easy to do. We get frustrated with people and customers and regulators and the government and everything else, and it’s easy to spend a lot of energy being negative. Especially when everyone around us is doing it.
But is that really productive? Is it the best thing for the organization as a whole, and for you as a leader, to complain about the things that frustrate us? Does that actually solve anything? Or does it simply set the tone for everyone else that “when things get tough, we complain about it.”
As hard as it is to push back, you must. Even if it makes you less popular, or less “everybody’s favorite boss”, or causes people to give you the evil eye. None of that matters. You know it’s the right thing to do, even if people punish you for it.
Complaining is just one example. You know dozens more. We are repeatedly faced with situations where just going along with everyone else is the safe, easy thing to do. If you want safe and easy, don’t be a leader. You know what’s right. Do it.
