My last blog drew upon the analogy of roots and stones on a hiking path, and how they can be the little things that trip us up and make a tough journey even harder. In this week’s blog I’ll build on that theme to explore the importance of the little things—in the form of opportunities—that we often look past or take for granted.
Looking back on my senior years in the US Coast Guard, I had the privilege of serving in positions of significant responsibility for Service-wide initiatives. As superintendent at the US Coast Guard Academy, we strengthened the Coast Guard’s relationship with our maritime partner, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). We turned the Academy into a joint service training center by bringing NOAA’s Basic Officer Training Candidate program to the Academy and integrating it into the Coast Guard’s Officer Candidate School. That made the Academy the sole accession source for all Coast Guard and NOAA officers. Both the Coast Guard and NOAA are better for the partnership.
The Things that Matter Most
No one has ever reached out to tell me what a great job we did with that or any of the other substantial programs I led. But, over the years I’ve received heart-warming feedback on the little things I’ve done…sometimes without even thinking about the impact. For instance, when I was serving as Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard’s recruit training center in Cape May, NJ, I had what I thought was a routine encounter with a recruit. I was walking back from the chapel one Sunday morning and came upon a recruit who had just exited the infirmary. She was visibly upset. I stopped and asked if she was ok, which brought forth tears and an explanation that she was injured and told she had to be reverted a few weeks while she recovered. That meant she’d no longer be training with or graduate with the company of recruits with whom she’d built bonds. I gave her a hug and assured her it would all work out ok.
I honestly thought nothing of the incident until years later, when I was visiting a Coast Guard unit in Alaska. After an all-hands meeting, a first class petty officer came up to me and said, “Admiral, you probably don’t remember me, but I’m the recruit you hugged back at Cape May. I’m only here because of what you did that day. I was so down I was going to quit, but you gave me the boost I needed to stick it out.” I was floored. It had been such a little thing to me, yet such a big thing to her.
The Measure of a Leader
I have many more stories like that one, and I’m sure you do, too. I believe the best leaders—the ones people follow because they want to, not because they must—are those who make time to do the little things that matter most. Seemingly small, informal things like giving a compliment in public, writing a personal note, or offering a word of encouragement are what make people feel valued and even more committed. Leaders are busy, and too often we focus on the big things by which we get measured on our performance reports. We can’t let ourselves be so consumed by the big things that we neglect the little things that matter most and by which we are measured by those with whom we work.
Look in the mirror: When’s the last time you gave a sincere compliment to an individual (not a group), wrote a personal note, or offered a word of encouragement?
Please join me again next time for more on Leading with Character.
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