Be Where You Need To Be
Over the past several months I’ve become a huge fan of Volodymyr Zelensky, the President of Ukraine. His courage, composure, and clarity of purpose have been inspiring and informative. I’ve learned several lessons from his leadership, but his leadership by example has impacted me the most. CNN’s expert, and retired General, Mark Hertling shared that Zelensky’s refusal to leave Kiyv, when it was under serious threat by the Russians, was the right decision for a leader. According to an AP story on Feb. 25, 2022 — Zelensky uttered the following remark as he rejected a U.S. offer of an immediate evacuation.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was asked to evacuate Kyiv at the behest of the U.S. government but turned down the offer. Zelensky said in response: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,”
Hertling stated, “He is doing what leaders do — He’s at the point of main effort.”
Upon hearing this I had to ask myself some honest questions:
- Am I too busy or tactical to know our Company’s main point of effort?
- If I am able to identify the main point of effort, then is that where I am spending my time? If not, why not?
Sometimes it takes a crisis to make clear where you, as the leader, should be and in those moments you need to have the courage to put yourself at the main point of effort. But I would argue, as the leader, you should always know your main point of effort and allocate enough of your time and presence to put yourself there. That’s what leaders do.
