“I think continually of those who were truly great…

The names of those who in their lives fought for life,

Who wore at their hearts the fire’s center.

Born of the sun, they traveled a short while towards the sun,

And left the vivid air signed with their honor.”

No one could watch the unfolding attacks in Mumbai last weekend without the wrenching horror the terrorists intended us to feel. Played out on TV screens and full-page newspaper spreads on an American holiday weekend, the senseless slaughter reached out to us all. This is manipulation in its grandest, most modern, most heinous, terms.

We mourn with India, a country that is inspiring in so many ways: its struggle for freedom; its embrace of diversity; its tempestuous democracy and society of laws; its opening of markets and private enterprise; its astonishing economic growth. The terrorists want an India with none of these virtues.

The business world should care about the outcome of such contests. I leave it to others to spell out the political and economic implications of the fight against terrorism. However, these events carry some lessons about leadership:

  • Lead from where you are. The stories emerging from the scenes of tragedy give numerous examples of people who became leaders on the spot by virtue of the fact that they were there, perhaps had a little more clarity about the possibilities than others, and somehow found the words to energize others about those possibilities. The virtue of leading from where you are is central to the widespread transformation of business enterprise. We probably expect too much of “official” leaders. They rely on the rest of us in smaller settings to take up the common cause.
  • Courage is the cardinal virtue. The remarkable stories emerging in the daily press remind us that there remains an unspoken dimension to leadership and the preparation of professionals. What makes it possible to struggle and lead in a dangerous place? Courage is the cardinal virtue because it makes all other virtues possible. Much of what we do in professional life should seek to build courage (to encourage) others because of the enormous multiplier effect it has on other things they do.
  • Honor heroes. In post-modern American culture it has not been fashionable to discuss heroes or heroism. It is said that all heroes have flaws, that heroism is not an absolute but rather is situation-specific, and that heroes diminish self-esteem of the rest of us. Each criticism bears a grain of truth, but gets the perspective completely wrong. We should celebrate heroes not because of who they are, but because of who we can become, and because of the meaning we hope to make. The stories of heroism that emerge from the terror attacks enliven all of us about our own potential to make meaning in the face of nihilism, to find courage where there is fear, to lead in the small as well as the large, to struggle even to the point of the ultimate sacrifice, and to live with dignity in a dangerous world. The poet, Stephen Spender, described them as “those who in their lives fought for life,/ Who wore at their hearts the fire’s center. Heroes give us a model to emulate.

At Darden, we wish our Indian colleagues and students strength to face this tragedy—and to those of any nationality or religion who have been struck by these events. The terrorists win to the extent that we accept the raw facts of their work without finding any alternative narratives in the attacks. We have a choice, however: from the stories emerging from the attacks, we can learn to lead from where we are; we can encourage others; and we can honor those who by their high example lend meaning to us all.

Posted by Robert Bruner at 12/01/2008 11:43:20 PM