Flying Blind: Navigating Challenges, Obstacles, and Explosions
What a theme park ride revealed about leading through challenges.
Recently, my daughter and I went to a little theme park.
Perhaps you may be familiar with it. Here’s a clue.
Okay, so maybe the theme park wasn’t very little. (It was Disneyland!)
As a long-time Star Wars fan, I really wanted to experience the newer Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge area, which I had never visited before.
Warning Signs
As I stood in line at a ride called Smuggler’s Run, I felt a little alarmed at all the health warnings.
A sign with a bright red triangle proclaimed,
“WARNING! For safety, you should be in good health and free from high blood pressure, heart, back or neck problems, motion sickness, or other conditions that could be aggravated by this adventure. Expectant mothers should not ride.”
This was highly unsettling.
However, my daughter, who had already gone on the ride before, assured me it was fine.
As we were briefed for the mission, I learned we were part of a six-person team trying to pilot some kind of flying vehicle. I forget exactly what kind because I had a slight problem once the ride started.
I was motion sick.
So, I closed my eyes.
Except, there was an even bigger problem.
I was one of the pilots.
The Issue
I was supposed to be steering the ship. I was on the front row. There was no one to hide behind.
My daughter, my co-pilot, deftly guided the ship up and down, over and under obstacles.
But I, the pilot who was supposed to steer left and right, had my eyes squeezed shut.
When I opened them, we were headed straight for an explosion. Oops, I just killed my crew.
The next time I opened my eyes, we crashed into a wall. Oh dear, I killed them again.
Needless to say, we did not get a very good score.
And who was to blame? Well. My co-pilot, of course.
Today’s Reality
Leadership these days can feel like you’re piloting a ship through many obstacles.
And flying blind is a situation that many leaders face. No one can predict the uncertain events that seem to occur regularly. Sometimes it feels like you’re just trying to survive turning the next corner.
Whether you’re dealing with monstrous critics, explosive conflicts, tidal waves of political power moves, a sinkhole of a financial situation, or obstacles you can’t break through, steering the ship takes great resolve and wisdom.
So, as you consider how to navigate the uncertain and challenging terrain effectively, remember the resources around you.
The Captain’s Toolkit
Flight plan — A sense of direction.
A ship that doesn’t know where it’s going will run out of fuel and fail its mission. Which direction are you headed? A sense of direction keeps everyone pointed the same way.
Radar — A view of what’s around and ahead of you.
Sometimes fighting a crisis or attending to the latest fire makes it hard to look ahead. But if we’re honest and look back, often there are troubles that were brewing that we were too busy to pay attention to. What trends or simmerings of unrest are you getting wind of?
Captain’s log — Learnings from what you’ve gone through.
Everybody makes mistakes, and even the best of intentions at times end up in failure. A wise leader reviews and assesses to influence the future instead of beating oneself down for not meeting expectations. Everyone loves a comeback story. Leaders who implement lessons learned help their teams come back stronger.
The team — Those who carry out the mission.
A captain who doesn’t tend to the team ends up with low morale and an ineffective crew. How clearly do you communicate the flight plan? When do you seek input on adjustments? How do you help everyone play their role and succeed?
Tools and systems — Methods and materials to get the job done.
The team needs support for its work. What tools, processes, training, and products do your team need to accomplish the mission? A big challenge these days is technology — whether the wrong kind, insufficient technology, or inadequate training for team members.
Ownership. Don’t blame your copilot.
As leaders, it’s all too easy to blame the system, blame the staff, blame the customers, or blame anyone but yourself. Leaders are problem-solvers. Shoulder the responsibility and do something about the issues your team faces.
I’m sure you can think of other analogies. And that’s not even mentioning the inner character-building of qualities like courage to keep your eyes open when it looks like you’re heading straight into the flames.
It’s amazing what a harrowing theme park ride reveals about leadership!
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