Jessica Watson is still the youngest person
to circumnavigate the globe.
Jessica set in motion a careful plan to bring her vision to life. She knew she could not control the winds and the oceans and decided they would not control her either.
I have the privilege of working with many leaders. It doesn’t take long to establish the ‘hopers’ from the ‘no-hopers’ – the optimists from the pessimists. Optimists seem to have an energy that people want to follow, an energy that endears engagement and success. I call them "victors". The opposite are the "victims". People that decide to find excuses - they blame, shame and manipulate. I call them "victims".
I don’t have a problem with ‘realists’ (I married one!). The problem comes when leaders lose their vision when the focus becomes the obstacles – pessimism takes hold.
Jessica learnt how to master the skills of high achievers: commitment, self discipline and optimism. And she knew that optimism comes with knowledge. So she decided to master sailing, safety, dealing with emergency, hand sewing sails, repairing machinery, desalinating water...
"Where their pessimist colleagues might over generalise a single negative event as foreshadowing a storm of similar negative events, optimists are generally better at containing the impact of any given negative event and not overreacting to it. They quarantine the stress and prevent it from spreading." Harry Mills, Ph.D 'Optimism and Resiliency.'
Jessica didn't play by the official rules. She did not out-do someone else. She out-did herself.
Maybe its time for you to look in the mirror – how do your people see your leadership? Talk to the Bridgeworks office about the Integro “How Others See Me” profile – a powerful insight into your leadership impact.
See you at the breakfast on Thursday 24th June at the Hilton!
Wayne Dyson
