80 Years of Leadership

Dear Managers and Leaders!

Today I am leaving for Quebec City to celebrate my father’s 80^th birthday on Saturday. I just want to take this opportunity to celebrate 80 years of leadership with you! Hope you will not mind the more personal tone of this post...

My father was born in 1929, the year of the great depression! He was living on a farm and he quit school when he was twelve to work on the farm. Guys in his family had two choices, really. Either they would become a priest or work on the farm. My father was not the best in school, so the priesthood was out of the question! The farm needed some arms, so my father started working full time for his father.

That lasted for a while, but when my father turned 19, some family event made him leave home with just a bit of money and a lot of courage. He went away, looking for a job. He ended up in northern Quebec where he learned the profession that would allow him to earn his living. He became a plumber! This is quite simple, you’ll say, but my father had a plan... After learning the ropes he got his licenses to become an entrepreneur and he started his own business. You see, he had to provide for 6 kids at the time and the 7^th was coming. He needed to find a way to make more money.

So he became an entrepreneur and grew his business. Up to 30 people worked for him at different times. Oh, it was not Enron or Microsoft, but it was his own business! It must not have been too too bad because he was able to retire at 58 years old. Not bad if you ask me!

You know, it is funny because what I told you above is the success path. I deliberately omitted all the setbacks, the numerous issues, the 24 hour shifts, the pain, and the suffering. It is funny because this is actually what makes the story really interesting! We always focus on the success path and we always want to avoid the mistakes and the suffering. However, all the problems that we face are actually what make us better persons, where our values are tested, where our entire personality is shown to the entire world. I believe we should embrace our issues as chances to grow, as opportunities to shown our worth. We should not try to avoid these challenges at all costs...

The problems that my father went through and how he managed them is really what showed me how great a leader my father was and still is! Let’s toast to my father’s 80 years of leadership!

And what about you dear leaders? Are you trying to escape your problems at all costs? Are you facing challenges with courage and determination?

Until next time,

Remi Cote