Unforgettable
Unforgettable
This is the word I have selected to describe the experience I had last week in Washington D.C.
I was fortunate to be part of an intimate leadership development day called, “Through the Eyes of Lincoln” which was hosted by my mentor, Dr. John C. Maxwell, and accompanied by Doris Kearns Goodwin. If you don’t know Doris Kearns Goodwin, she is a presidential historian, international keynote speaker, Pulitzer Prize-winning, New York Times #1 best-selling author, and a partner in Pastimes Productions.
Ms. Goodwin’s award-winning book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln was the inspiration for Steven Spielberg’s film “Lincoln,” which earned 12 Academy Award® nominations, including an Academy Award for actor Daniel Day- Lewis for his portrayal of the 16th president.
Having a seat at the table for this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience to learn from two legendary leaders.
We began the day with Doris leading us through a history lesson like I have never experienced before. It was as if we were transported back in time as she walked us through the history of Abraham Lincoln, and how he started off his life as a young boy with only 12 months of schooling under his belt. She then proceeded to detail his path in life to becoming the 16th President of the United States.
I am not going to lie, in school, history was not my best subject. I suppose it is because I am more of a forward-looking leader, so I don’t often look back at the past because I am focused on the future (Futuristic is my #1 Strength). However, the way Doris brought Lincoln to life in this history lesson made me realize how important it is to look at how the past has helped to shape who we are today.
The morning flew past, and before I knew it, lunch was being served. From there, we packed up our things to head out on the tour bus with Doris and John in the lead to visit the most historical sites in our nation’s history: Lincoln’s Cottage, Petersen’s House, Ford’s Theater, Lincoln Memorial, and MLK Memorial.
This was an intimate event. For some context, there were only 15 of us in the group, and we have Doris Kearns Goodwin and John Maxwell as our tour guides! Yes, I had to pinch myself more than a few times.
The leadership lessons learned during this day were countless, but there are several which stood out to me that are worth sharing with you:
1) John Maxwell is always learning. As I sat next to John at the table that morning, I watched how he took meticulous notes on what Doris was teaching. With all that he has accomplished, including the countless leaders he has taught around the world, he is always a student and practices lifting his “leadership lid”. John is never an expert. He is always improving and never lives in his past.
2) Great leaders listen. What I admired most about Lincoln during his rise to greatness is how he always allowed people to feel heard. He made time to listen and understand what the people were feeling, and he walked slowly through the crowd. Perhaps most amazingly, he always kept the door to the White House open so that any visitor could enter and speak to him – can you imagine a
President like this today?
3) Great leaders go from ‘Me’ to ‘We’. Instead of turning his back on his top 3 rivals, Lincoln invited them to be part of his cabinet. He knew they were the smartest leaders out there, and if he wanted to surround himself with smart leaders to serve the people, he needed them by his side. That was brilliant to me. He put his ego aside and created a well-rounded team.
4) Even Steven Spielberg doubts himself. As Doris described the night, she went to Steven’s house to watch the first viewing of the movie “Lincoln,” Steven couldn’t watch it with her. Instead, he was outside on his back deck pacing the whole time hoping that he had created something special that would bring Lincoln to life.
5) The most powerful force is belief. If you study Lincoln’s pedigree and his educational background, many will doubt someone like him would ever become President. It was the ‘borrowed belief’ that the people provided to him that propelled him forward. He possessed the gift of empathy and the ability to connect with people. In turn, that created the momentum for what people believed he could do and chose to get behind him. Sometimes, we may doubt ourselves and we may not have the resources necessary to get started. However, the borrowed belief of another is what gives us hope and when we see hope, courage will carry us forward.
As the day came to an end and I sat at the dinner table with Doris and John, we all reflected on the lessons of the day that each of us carried with us and in our hearts. To be surrounded by such greatness in such an intimate setting was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
As John taught me, “Big people make you feel bigger and small people make you feel smaller.”
I can surely say, I feel much bigger after this memorable day.
To Your Growth,
Kelly
