Fall, Get Up, Smile
Leadership lessons from youth
“If you are not willing to be a fool, you can’t become a master.” - Jordan Peterson
“It may seem difficult at first, but everything is difficult at first.” - Miyamoto Musashi
“The beginning is the most important part of the work.” - Plato
***
I recently went ice skating for the first time.
In Africa.
In their summer.
Like much of life, this was never “the plan.” I figured after 45 years of no ice skating, the next 45 years would most likely also contain no ice skating. Well, surprise!
Fortunately, it was a good time. I didn’t die or break anything. And was glad I did it.
But it certainly wasn’t my idea.
Since 2018, I’ve had the pleasure to support and be involved with the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP), so when I go to South Africa, I always want to visit our various Program Partners who are doing the good work on the ground as well as meet with our YLS Scholars. They’re all inspiring.
The Youth Leaders Scholarship (YLS) provides young leaders, who have been nominated by CTAOP Program Partners, with funding, tools, and resources to access tertiary studies and achieve long-term success. YLS was built with the understanding that true lasting change will only come from within communities themselves. CTAOP believes the leaders there are the experts—they are the ones with the vision, the passion, and the true connection to their community. YLS is an investment in those young leaders, their potential as changemakers, and the future they envision.
On this last trip to Johannesburg, after asking to meet some of the scholars (university students) in the area, I figured I’d take them out to a nice lunch or dinner and have a good chat. But when they were asked what they wanted to do, the scholars said, “ice skating!”
They weren’t kidding.
And they didn’t change their mind.
Interestingly, none of them had ever been ice skating before.
So, while I viewed it as an odd choice, I wasn’t going to talk them out of it. And I was definitely going to show up. But was I going to actually skate on the ice? A past version of myself would have watched from the sidelines. I could’ve “justified it” by saying I didn’t want to “risk injury,” given my lack of experience.
When I was in 5th grade, I went to a roller skating party one Friday night. I tried on the skates and then attempted to skate with the other kids. Well, after about three seconds, I fell down, took off the skates, said “skating’s not my thing,” and never put on roller skates again. And a strong aversion to trying new things stuck with me for a long time.
Fortunately, a big area of growth in my life has been the increased willingness to do things I’m not good at. This has helped me stick with other pursuits like jiu-jitsu and guitar for extended period. So, I laced up the skates that day and hit the ice.
The railing is your friend. The first few minutes skating were with (at least) one hand on the rail to make sure I stayed upright while trying to figure out how to move on ice in these shoes set on blades. All of us were in the same boat.
Then maybe five minutes later, one of the scholars, Linda, pipes up. He says, “Hey Dave - let’s go to the other side!” And he wasn’t suggesting we take the long way around. Straight across. Nothing to hold onto.
I would not have left the railing that soon, if not for his encouragement/push. We had fun. We both fell. I fell more than he did. But we both made it across in one piece.
Beginning with this bold move, even though he wasn’t leading a team or in a formal leadership position, I saw Linda demonstrate what seemed like instinctive leadership qualities throughout the session that day. It was great to see, and I believe everyone can learn from his example. As he was skating around, I pointed out the following traits on display to one of our CTAOP team members.
Leadership 101
Good leaders lead by example.
What was the goal that day? To skate. How do you do that? You skate. Easier said than done, as a lot of people can get lost in their head and freeze. I know. Negative thought loops around what may go wrong can paralyze one from taking action. Especially after a fall or misstep, seeing something that’s not what you want. The best way to combat this is through action, which immediately puts those thoughts in the background and/or rearview and moves you closer to the goal. Leaders help others see through to the other side.
Good leaders stay focused on the goal.
Beyond simply staying upright, a second goal was to have fun. How do you do that? Laugh. Smile. Shake things off. Keep moving. It’s not difficult to start with a smile, but those challenges and repeated frustrating moments doing something new can turn that frown upside down real quick.
You can focus on what you’re not (a proficient skater) vs where you want to be (a proficient skater). In these moments of self-criticism and frustration, it is helpful to look up to see someone in the same position (a beginner) getting back up with a smile and going again. And again. Linda was beaming with smiles all day. He fell more than any of us. He also skated more than any of us. He spent the most time on the ice. And I’d say he had the most fun. He encouraged me to do more than I would have on my own, and because of his attitude, everyone couldn’t help but have a great time. Negativity is contagious. So is positivity. Keep smiling (and focused) as you move through difficulty and others will come around.
Good leaders seek to grow and aren’t afraid to ask for help.
While the rest of us were hugging the railing and trying to just figure it out on our own, I saw Linda shoot right over to one of the better skaters, who’d been circling around the rink with ease and obviously had years of experience. This guy didn’t know us. He was there to do his own thing. Linda said something like, “hello, I’m Linda. I was watching you skate, and you are really good. This is my first time on skates. Would you mind coaching me - tell me what I’m doing wrong and what I need to be focused on to get better?” Fortunately, this guy - I think his name was Rico (and yes, he was Suave on the ice) - was open to helping. But how could one not be when someone comes to you with such a great attitude and eagerness to learn?
Leaders who are not out front and not growing/learning have nowhere new to lead their people. Growth of leaders allows for growth of those around them.
Good leaders push the boundaries (of themselves and others).
Without challenge, without stress, there’s no growth. It was clear that Linda was good at pushing his own boundaries, but as I mentioned earlier, he encouraged me to go further away from rail way before I would have on my own. In addition, after listening to Rico and skating around several times with the new tips and techniques, I heard him challenge Rico (half playful/half serious), “race you one time around!” It was hilarious. And very cool. They did race, and Linda was “all-in” - Rico was a good sport, too, keeping it close. And even though Rico edged him out, Linda was still all smiles.
Good leaders teach and encourage.
After lacing up his skates, going full speed into the unfamiliar, falling, getting up, falling again, staying up longer, asking for help, and continuing to improve, I saw Linda go over to a young girl who was there with her parents learning to skate. He then offered to help her with the little knowledge he had gained over the past hour from trial and error and his time with Rico. He carefully and slowly explained to her what had helped him gain balance and improve. There seemed to be an inherent desire to lift others up, as he was getting lifted up. Ironically, this compulsion to teach and share is hard to teach.
Ice Ice Baby
Still find it amazing that one young man would just demonstrate (without knowing it!) several key leadership qualities in one short session on the ice. I believe it really all started with the attitude - to go for it, to humbly learn, and then to help others - all with a smile.
These are leadership qualities.
In summary, Linda’s vision, belief, willingness to look foolish in order to get better, relentless forward movement, humility to ask for help, and a desire to pull others up along with him should make him a great leader whatever he chooses to do in life.
Thank you, Linda! Looking forward to seeing you continue to grow and inspire others.
(And if you want to support young future leaders like Linda, you can do so here.)
***
Past posts
Beyond Logistics post #1 re: Trucking 101 —> here
Beyond Logistics post #2 re: Life —> here
Beyond Logistics post #3 re: Pricing —> here
Beyond Logistics post #4 re: Communication —> here
Beyond Logistics post #5 re: Technology —> here
Beyond Logistics post #6 re: 3PL Trends —> here
Beyond Logistics post #7 re: Lessons from Comics —> here
Beyond Logistics post #8 re: Cleaning Up Inside —> here
Beyond Logistics post #9 re: All Bad Things Must End —> here
Beyond Logistics post #10 re: Better Questions —> here
Beyond Logistics post #11 re: 2023 Outlook —> here
Beyond Logistics post #12 re: Anti-Fragile —> here
Beyond Logistics post #13 re: Unions —> here
Beyond Logistics post #14 re: Yellow - The End —> here
Beyond Logistics post #15 re: Keep a Good Circle —> here
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About the author: Dave Ross currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer at Roadrunner and strategic advisor to Global X Airlines. Until its recent sale (12/2023), he also served as Chief Strategy Officer for Ascent. Prior to becoming an industry executive, he was Managing Director and Group Head of Stifel’s Transportation & Logistics Equity Research practice, where he was a top-ranked Wall St. analyst and spent >20 years researching and writing on the freight transportation & logistics industry. Based in Miami, FL, he’s a connector, artist, advisor, dog dad, athlete, traveler, investor, board member (CTAOP, Humane Society, and Fountainhead), and more.
** All opinions in this piece are solely those of the author and not intended to represent those of Roadrunner or other affiliated entities.