Tuesday, 29 January 2008
Leadership Lessons from School
| Today my kids go back to school after a long summer break. Last night as we lay talking about their hopes and fears for the year it became clear one fear was quite strong - "would they make a mistake and be embarrassed in front of everyone"? The fear of embarrassment is a fear for people no matter their age. The fear that you will make a mistake and people will laugh at you can paralyse you from doing anything. How can you break that fear? Telling it to go away won't cut it. Sometimes you just need to laugh at the fear and learn from others who have had the very experience you fear the most (and survived). As a leader - sometimes you have to be the one who shares your experiences to your team, to allow yourself to be open and vulnerable to help others to grow. So here is the story of my worst embarrassment - and how I survived. Picture a tall, gangly, pimply 12 year old (me). I had just started a catholic high school in the fringes of Sydney and knew no one at the school when I started. It was about 2 months into the school year - still warm as I was enjoying sitting on the bench outside my classroom in the sunshine. Our classroom had windows that opened up and out and I was sitting beneath one of the open windows. A girl popped her head out of the window and started teasing me - I took it silently for a few minutes before I reached up and started to shut the window to silence her words. The only problem was the girl just at that moment leant even further forward, so the window smashed onto her head - and the glass shattered. I was marched to the office in tears and fear and told by the principal (a very stern nun) that I was to inform my parents that night what I had done and return the next morning with a letter from my parents about what they would do about my error. Fast forward a few hours - I used to catch the bus down to the local library after school. One of the boys at the library from the boys school near us handed me a note. It was a typical teenage love note all full of how much he liked me and asking me to be his girlfriend. The day wasn't a total loss after all! That night I copped a hiding from my parents and was handed a letter to give to the Principal in the morning saying what had been done at home and how they were going to pay for the broken window. The next day I walked with wobbly legs and dry mouth into the Principal's office. I handed the Principal the note - watched her read it and then with growing horror realised that I had given her the note from the boy and not my parents. My heart sank beneath my feet and I grabbed the note and ran out of the office. I wanted to curl up and die from embarassment. ... But I didn't. The Principal never mentioned it again. My parents had a great laugh about it and my friends helped me through it. I didn't die. The world moved on. In a few short weeks it was old news in the school. If you have ever stuffed up ask yourself - what will this really matter in a few weeks time. Will this really make a difference to the world? Yes, there will be times when you are embarrassed - but if you don't stuff up every now and again you aren't human. How do you deal with a team member or colleague that has made a mistake? Do you make it easy on them or do you make their embarrassment harder to deal with? Do you share your stories with your team? Love to hear your thoughts. Until next time Ingrid Cliff Heart Harmony Labels: dealing with embarrassment, leadership, mistakes |
