Leaders in Business: The Cold Will Tell
Forbes Agency Council
In 1982, Roger Rosenblatt wrote an essay for Time titled, “The Man in the Water.” In it, he relates the story of Flight 90’s crash in the Potomac River and the actions of an unidentified man who captured the attention of the nation. He described the man as “balding, probably in his 50s, [with] an extravagant mustache,” and explained that the man was seen clinging to the tail end of the plane alongside five other survivors. Onlookers — both in person and on TV — watched as this unidentified man demonstrated courage and selflessness in the face of certain death.
Each time the helicopter came to rescue a survivor, the man in the water refused to go before the others, giving the opportunity for life to all others instead of accepting it for himself. Deprived of his professional title, name and identity, the man — who at first glance might be described as ordinary and mediocre — became a leader among men and women.
As leaders in business, you should constantly put yourselves into the metaphorical cold of the Potomac River. Try to imagine what kind of leader you would become in a life or death situation. Try it out as a sort of personal development course; you might be asking what you are expected to find there. By putting yourself in place of the man in the water, you will discover how your leadership style changes under pressure. Life and death situations — even imaginary ones — may not teach us the ins and outs of brand strategy, but they will always weed out the selfish and the insincere. You can prove your sincerity in a number of ways, but before all, you must be honest. Never lie or even bend a truth to win a customer. Though you might win their loyalty for a moment, they will eventually notice a pattern of dishonesty and their bad opinion of you will lead to an even worse reputation. By putting yourself into “the cold of the Potomac,” you will be able to identify exactly where and when your leadership fails or flourishes. You will discover what needs improving and you will eventually become a leader.
As a leader, you will discover that reputation means nothing if it is only skin deep. Some CEOs spend restless night after restless night battling business-born demons, torturing themselves in an attempt to mix company and personal reputation with the expectations of clients. The most difficult part about being a people pleaser is that all people are pleased by different things. The more you try to cater to the demands of others, the more your personality disintegrates; you sacrifice who you are for who you think people want you to be. Nobody trusts the person who is willing to say anything to fit in with multiple groups. This smacks of incongruence and reeks of inconsistency. Over time, instead of establishing an authentic personality, you become the blurred reflection of a thousand fake friends.
Leaders should build relationships at all levels, both within and outside of their company. Just like the “man in the water,” the cold of the Potomac will strip you of your titles. It will remove the masks you often wear as a consequence of higher salaries. The cold of the Potomac will provide a safe place for leaders to discover hidden attributes, as it forces leaders to search themselves and discover areas for improvement and qualities they never knew they had. Unobstructed by your masks, you can truly see your clients and meet their needs, not because you know their needs, but because you can know them as individuals. In turn, your employees and your clients will come to better know and trust you.
A Leader Is Selfless
Clients, employees, partners and co-workers alike will rally around the man or woman who proves to sincerely value the welfare of others. Customers crave businesses that care. Unfortunately for frauds, customers are getting better at spotting insincerity. Because of the rise in scams, cons and fake news, people are gaining a hypersensitivity to insincerity — meaning you’re going to need more than a friendly smile and a firm handshake to win customers. Now, more than ever, it is important to find the value of selflessness in your leadership.
The Man In The Water
When the helicopter finally arrived for the man in the water — the man no one knew — he had disappeared into the depths of the river for the last time. Rosenblatt muses, “at some moment in the water he must have realized that he would not live if he continued to hand over the rope and ring to others. He had to know it, no matter how gradual the effect of the cold. In his judgment he had no choice. When the helicopter took off with what was to be the last survivor, he watched everything in the world move away from him, and he deliberately let it happen.”
Your employees, your customers and your partners know what type of leader you are, even if you don’t. Would you remain calm and in control in moments of crisis? Would you have the answers when everyone else might panic? Would you pass the rope and ring to those you lead?
If you’ve ever wondered whether or not you’re a good leader, the cold will tell.
Written by: Jeff Grover
Originally published at www.forbes.com on October 10, 2017.
