Sacrifice: The Loneliest Form of Greatness
When I was young, I did not imagine myself in a leadership role as an adult. Life does not always take you down the path upon which you started. For almost 24 years now I have been the Founder and CEO of my company, Xojo, Inc. I became a leader out of necessity (as I suspect most do) and have had to learn leadership primary through the school of hard knocks. I learn the way we all do, by watching how those more skilled than I act and by making lots of mistakes. With that in mind, here are a few of the most important things I have learned:
You must set an example. As a leader you must rise above your personal thoughts and feelings, instead focusing on what is best for those you lead.
You must anticipate potential threats early and often. This is done by surrounding yourself with those who are smarter than you are in their given areas so that you have at your disposal the widest possible view of the horizon so you can see threats coming from every angle.
You must be willing to make sacrifices when necessary.
All leaders make mistakes and the President of the United States is no exception. Becoming President does not immune one from having to place a bet and getting it wrong. Having said that, President Trump has failed at the basics of leadership as to make the disastrous way his administration has handled the Coronavirus pandemic a near certainty.
In general, President Trump does not surround himself with experts. He instead makes choices based almost entirely on loyalty. Loyalty is an important attribute of any team member so the President is right to value it, however, it must be in a distant third position to skill and integrity. A leader must surround themselves with experts who will speak their minds and are in an environment where doing so is encouraged rather than being a potentially career-ending move. Only after this should loyalty be a consideration.
In 2018 President Trump dismantled the National Security Council’s global-health office that resulted in our country no longer being prepared for possible pandemics despite the regularity with which they have occurred over the last 30 years. He also eliminated the position within the White House staff that would keep him and his leadership team apprised of pathogenic threats.
The result is that we are 3 months behind in preparing test kits. In the United States we have tested a total of 11,000 people. Compare that with South Korea, a country with 1/6th our population, where they are testing 20,000 people per day. While Johns Hopkins is providing us with real time statistics on active cases, it's important to understand that these are known active cases. Today the number of known cases in the United States stands at over 2100. A Johns Hopkins infectious disease professor said that we almost certainly have somewhere between 50,000 and 500,000 cases.
Two weeks ago, my daughter returned from 6 months in Seoul, South Korea where she was on a Department of State-sponsored program to become fluent in Korean. When the outbreak found its way to there, the program was ended 3 months early. Even though South Korea has 4 times the number of cases, I can say with confidence that she would have likely been safer staying in South Korea than returning to the United States.
It is said that under pressure, some people focus while others fold. I have learned that I focus. From what I have seen of President Trump, at least in the current pandemic crisis, he doesn't focus or fold. He either chooses to be woefully ignorant of threats, lie to the people he leads or is simply incapable of being a good leader. Based upon his past behavior, this third possibility seems to be the most likely one. Again Presidents do make mistakes and while we cannot fault them for that, we can expect them to learn from those mistakes. President Trump has shown no ability to do this. When he changes his mind, it's only under duress.
One of my all-time favorite movies is The Contender. If you haven't seen it, it's the story of a sex scandal that rocks the confirmation process of a new Vice-Presidential candidate. In a speech before Congress, the President says that greatness is a leadership trait and that sacrifice is its loneliest form. I could not agree more.
President Trump has yet to have any moments of greatness but there is an opportunity for it right now. The President can make a personal sacrifice on behalf of a nation in crisis. Because of a dearth of leadership, the nation is panicking. Our support systems are creaking under the strain as a sign that they could break down completely. This can be mitigated. This doesn't have to happen.
Our nation needs a leader who inspires confidence. That comes from being prepared, by speaking calmingly yet with confidence and eloquence, and by putting aside even the tiniest hint of politics in favor of that one thing that is most important to quelling panic, a message of unity. The President has made it abundantly clear that being a unifying leader, being a leader who can command in a crisis and inspire the nation to work together, being a leader with whom we can confidently depend, is beyond him.
President Trump has come upon his moment of greatness. He can utilize that loneliest form of it and make a sacrifice not only in the name of greatness but that of patriotism. He can do this by resigning his position as President so that Vice-President Mike Pence who has greater leadership experience can step in and lead our nation through this terrible crisis. I'm not fan of Mike Pence but he is a former governor and would be a far greater leader given how low the bar has been set. While this may seem like a politically-motivated and opportunistic suggestion, it is not one. I am an independent. I look at all the candidates as objectively as I am able.
Mr. President, this is your moment. Be a great citizen of this nation. Be a patriot. Summon the loneliest form of greatness and resign for the good of a desperate nation.