When my family first arrived in Omaha, we moved into an apartment complex with a clubhouse and large swimming pool. In our first summer, we spent many hours in that pool to give us respite from the heat, opportunities to meet new friends, and just plain old water related fun.
The Price of Daring
One day, however, still gives me, as a parent, shivers. At the time, Josh was little more than 2 years old. Ellie had not yet turned one. While my wife was looking after our youngest, Josh was practicing jumping from the side of the pool into my open arms. It was important to us that our kids weren’t afraid of the water. With each successive jump, the smile on my son’s face broadened. He was certainly enjoying himself. He was gaining confidence, but still inexperienced. This sometimes can be a dangerous time for people.
I put my boy back up on the side of the pool and told him to jump to me as he had more than a dozen times that day. This time, he took off running down the edge of the pool and proceeded to jump into the pool where no parent with open arms awaited him.
He sank like a rock.
I still remember the terror in my mind and the cursing from my mouth that occurred at that moment. In the water, I was moving somewhat slowly. My struggling child was maybe 50 feet from me, which seemed like miles. All the fears of parenthood crash into your mind at once, but you immediately push them aside and gain one singular focus—save that boy.
Tragedy Averted
Fortunately, a young man had been lounging with his friends at the other end of the pool where my boy had jumped. He quickly grasped the seriousness of the situation, ran down the pool stairs and lifted him from the water. A wave of relief and gratitude welled up within me. Thanking the good Samaritan, I took Josh and held him in my arms, telling him that he needed to be a bit more careful. For his part, Josh was shaken up quite a bit, coughing and trembling from the fear.
As we both calmed down, we again turned to young man, thanking him for his quick action, kindness, and service he had performed for our family. We were all filled with gratitude.
I was reminded of this memory today, when I saw Josh jump into the hotel pool. Josh has become a tremendous swimmer in the subsequent years, much better than me at my age. I watched him as I held my 2 year old-knowing that she is just as vulnerable as Josh was at that time. She, however, seems to show a little more discretion. She smiles and laughs more in the pool than she used to, but she has always had a healthy respect for the danger around water. That’s probably a good thing.
How does this relate to leadership?
Any time of change or innovation requires navigating a delicate balance between daring and prudence. Too much of the former is dangerous. Too much of the latter, makes growth impossible. Granted, the situations we run into in the business world rarely rise to the seriousness of life and death, though it’s not insignificant to realize there are no good Samaritans ready to pull your head above water if you end up struggling. That’s part of growing up in the world of business.
