Together
Together may be the most valuable word in the human language. There is very little we can accomplish on our own.
Somehow we have this image of the hero as an individual, alone, overcoming enormous obstacles. But that media myth is so far from the truth. In real life, almost everything we accomplish involves each of us individually making one small action that aggregates to a tsunami of change. Through individual actions, we ultimately become a group of people banded together, making change happen.
Watch around you this week. It’s not only the designated leader who drives change, it’s that “first follower” who reinforces the action. It’s each person doing one small (or big) thing. Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white man on a bus. Her powerful and lone action was amplified a few days later when 40,000 Black bus riders — the majority of the city’s bus riders — boycotted Montgomery, Alabama bus system together. And together they boycotted for more than a year.
Leadership is recognizing when it’s time for change, launching that first initial step, amplifying subtle movements, serving as a gentle guide to generate momentum, together.
Watch around you this week and see where you can work together with others in small, everyday actions that can begin to transform the world around you.
“Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean.” — Ryunosuke Satoro
About the Authors
Pam Thompson MS, RN, FAAN is the CEO Emeritus of the American Organization for Nursing Leadership, formerly AONE. During the same time, 2000–2016, she was the Senior VP of Nursing for the American Hospital Association. After retiring in 2017, she now serves as a healthcare consultant and volunteer board member and trustee for several healthcare entities.
Marla Weston PhD, RN, FAAN is the past CEO of the American Nurses Association Enterprise which included the American Nurses Association, American Nurses Credentialing Center and American Nurses Foundation, serving from 2009 to 2018. She now is a consultant and facilitator in leadership development, organizational strategy and growth, and future trends.
