Leading with Character: The Right Person for the Job
Earlier this week my 86-year-old mother called me at 6:00 in the morning to inform me she had a flat tire on her car. Fortunately, when she left the driveway to get her morning paper, she noticed something wrong and promptly returned. After my morning walk, I drove the one-half mile to her home to install the emergency spare. Then, I’d take the car down to a local dealership, Sullivan Tire, to evaluate the tire for repair or replacement. A simple task, or so I thought. After all, I’d spent 40 years in uniform with the US Coast Guard. Changing a tire was nothing compared to commanding a Coast Guard cutter.
That’s a Man’s Job!
As I got down on my knees and began jacking up the car, my mother exclaimed vehemently, “That’s a man’s job!” An elderly neighbor happened to walk over, and my mother told her, “Sandy shouldn’t be doing this; it’s a man’s job!” When I went to remove the lug nuts on those seven-year-old tires, they were frozen solid. Out came the WD-40 and the sledgehammer.
Seeing me pounding away on the lug nut wrench threw my mom into a tizzy and she kept exclaiming, “That’s a man’sjob!” So, the helpful neighbor went home to fetch her elderly husband. Then I had three well-intended people, including a man, watching and supervising this woman who was trying to do what they presumed to be a man’s job. If I hadn’t had the sledgehammer to slam down on the lug nut wrench, I probably would have screamed in frustration. But in short order the lubricant and tools did their job; the flat tire was off and the spare installed.
You Have What It Takes
I’m no stranger to changing tires. In my younger years, I went through a phase and drove a Dodge Stealth sports car. Those big, fat, soft performance tires sucked up nails like a lint roller picks up lint. There was a time when I was stationed at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, DC, and got a flat tire downtown. I was heading into work in my dress uniform, complete with a skirt and heels. Yup, I changed that tire right there on the side of the road, without getting grease on my uniform, and made it into work on time. Learning how to change tires empowered me with the confidence that I had what it takes to do anything I put my mind (and elbow grease) to.
Raised as the eldest of four children with three younger brothers, it’s perhaps no surprise that I became a tomboy. I was used to being the only girl and my parents never treated me differently than my brothers. When I entered the US Coast Guard Academy in 1978 with just the third class to have women, and then served as the first or only woman on five of my six ships, I worked alongside and led men, doing what were traditionally “men’s jobs.”
It’s All About Talent and Ability
I liked that the Coast Guard never treated me differently because I was a woman, and that the Service never imposed combat restrictions on the jobs women could do. I was evaluated on how I performed my job, not on preconceived notions about my gender. Sure, there were some who doubted women were up to the task, but those were the very rare few, and I learned to derive great joy in proving them wrong.
Today, there are still people, like my mother, who were raised in a different generation and have preconceived notions about who should be doing certain jobs. As leaders of character, we need to take full advantage of our diverse workforce. We must apply talent and ability to optimally align with the job at hand. Success of the team or organization is all about finding the right person for the job, regardless of demographics.
Look in the mirror: When you need someone for a job, do you look first at talent and ability, or do you find yourself being swayed by demographic characteristics such as gender, race, and ethnicity?
Please join me again next week for more on Leading with Character.
If you enjoyed this post, please visit my website where you can buy my book, Breaking Ice & Breaking Glass: Leading in Uncharted Waters, and sign up for my mailing list: https://sandrastosz.com/book/breaking-ice-and-breaking-glass/
