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Tough lessons in leadership

June 28, 2010 — Leave a comment

Let me start this post with a disclaimer of sorts: I’ll be the first to admit that have an opinion on just about everything. And even though I’ve been in Arkansas for a year now, I still keep tabs on what’s going on in the Dallas area — particularly since I spent so many years in D/FW and still have many friends and colleagues there.

All that said, there are lessons we can learn from reading and watching the news. I admittedly try to limit my consumption of it, since it is clinically proven as bad for our health. Still, the events of the past nine days have been eye-opening to me — and I’ve been reminded of some tough lessons in leadership that are perhaps worth sharing.

For those of you unfamiliar with the big story from the D/FW metroplex, on Father’s Day (June 20) the adult son of the brand-spanking new Dallas Police Chief, David Brown, Sr. (in that position for about two months) killed Lancaster police Officer Craig Shaw as Shaw responded to the call of a shooting at an apartment complex. (Click here to read the original story from WFAA). According to the report, “the Lancaster officer — a five-year veteran of the force and the father of two children — was answering a ‘shooting in progress’ call around 6 p.m. when there was an exchange of gunfire.”

A 37-year-old five-year officer — a husband and father of two children — was killed on Father’s Day by the son of the new Dallas Police Chief.

OK, so it’s a bad situation already. A tragic loss of life for a family. The only officer killed in the line of duty in the history of the Lancaster department. And a pretty rough start, I’d say, for the new head of DPD, who must deal with not only the loss of an area officer who was killed by his son – but also with the loss of the son himself — also killed in the incident.

Fast forward to Sunday, June 27, after a full week of a news dominated by coverage of the incident, the aftermath, and the preparations for the funeral of a police officer.

Just when you think a situation couldn’t get any worse . . . well, it does. Continue Reading…

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Mother’s Day: A day to . . .

May 9, 2010 — 4 Comments

Mother’s Day is one of those days that brings different emotions to many people. There is often sadness for those whose mothers have passed on, particularly if the loss was recent. There is often celebration of those mothers who could have earned a ‘Mother of the Year’ award almost any year.

However, the reality is that most people experience real life in their relationship with their mother — a mixed bag of happy memories, sincere regrets, angry outbursts, complicated misunderstandings, periods of silence and so on.

Perhaps that’s why card shops like Hallmark, after so many years in business, still seem to struggle to produce just the right card for many well-intentioned shoppers. With Mother’s Day card categories like “Mom, You’re the Best,” “Across the Miles,” “Warm and Respectful,” “Humorous,” and “Simply Stated,” you’d think there could be just the right card somewhere in that long aisle.

However, year after year I have observed many fellow shoppers struggling to find that perfect card, and I’ve listened with interest to their under-the-breath grumbling as they frantically search for that seemingly elusive card. Continue Reading…

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