30th Anniversary Blackhawk Down Oct 3d and World Mental Health Day – October 10
You’ll never walk alone – leaders leave no one behind.
My friends all know of my passion for the beautiful game of futbol or what we Americans call soccer. My favorite team is Liverpool in the Premier league. Their motto “You’ll Never Walk Alone.” is a great guide to a mindset we all should have as we help each other deal with mental health challenges.
A team member confided to me just the other day what he has been going through, triggered by the anniversary of his daughter’s death. It’s a poignant memory of the young girl he could not save when she was choking
because he was plagued by addiction and mental health issues.
But instead of hunkering down during a traumatic month, as he has for more than a decade, this time he walked a different path. By moving from isolation to inclusion, he willingly shared with friends, family and
colleagues the full array of his emotions.
October 3 -4 is the 30 year anniversary of the 3d Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment battle in Somalia during Gothic Serpent made famous in the movie Blackhawk Down. It is a time when many from that team suffer with mental health challenges as they remember losing team members.
This is a message for all of us—we never have to walk alone. It’s especially timely now—October 10 th is World Mental Health Day.
Our conversations around wellbeing and mental illness are changing. I work with a team where many are recovering addicts and suffer from mental health issues. Many veterans struggle mightily with PTS. Personally, I’ve been humbled and honored to receive an outpouring of so many heartfelt stories that have been shared with me in response to my willingness to care. With incredible candor one person after another opened
up, describing “an increasing feeling of isolation” … being “surrounded by addiction for most of my adult life” … having “fear of how they may judge me.”
Yet, rising above they also celebrate “opening the door and asking for help” … “finding the courage to share” … “love, compassion, and patience” … “unconditional caring.” They want to have a tomorrow that is a bit better than yesterday.
Connective and cathartic, each is a testimony to the true meaning of health and hope. Empathetic, authentic care for our team members eventually helps to develop enough trust to peel away the veil and create transparency for team members to “ Never Walk Alone.”
Our team tries to focus on every team member being a better version of themselves than they were yesterday. You do not need to be shackled by your worst days in the past.
From the workplace to our personal lives—increasingly blended together—every day is a chance for renewal. And every story shared is another opportunity to open our minds, lead with our hearts, and seek to understand.
Management is about doing things right. It involves managing the numbers. Leadership on the other hand is about doing the right thing. It is about treating every team member as a unique gift.
Albert Einstein famously wrote on his chalkboard a favorite quote that he had taken to heart: “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”
As we look at these words through the lens of health, wellness, and awareness, it’s important to recognize that just because we may not personally experience something, it is happening to others around us. It’s
real—and it counts. And the people and their stories are present in every workplace and environment. Design thinking teaches us to zoom out and watch with empathy. Solve problems with a human centric approach.
This calls to mind the recent observation shared with me by the team member who lost his daughter. He shared with me that this was the first year he was able to not punish himself and move on with the help of those around him. This further punctuates the point: “What is unseen has just as much value as what is seen.”
Those words were expressed by yet another colleague, who is dealing with a disability, as he captured his “many conflicted feelings and thoughts.” He shared with me his struggles, acceptance, and ultimately finding meaning, as he reconciles what he used to do—and what he is able to do now.
Through it all, he’s found a silver lining—becoming a much more connected, self-aware, and vulnerable leader. This speaks to the very essence of leadership: making a connection with others to transport people from here to there—both emotionally and literally. Everyone deserves to be a better version of themselves every day.
After all, leadership is not a role—it’s a calling.
As human beings, not human doings, we are all easily biased toward what we see and can easily discard what we don’t see. Making a connection with others, however, means observing and feeling both—the seen
and the unseen. So, how can we all travel further down this path?
Being a bit more vulnerable and a lot more authentic. In a word – EMPATHY. Asking, listening, learning, and acting—with and on behalf of others. And always with humility and inclusivity.
Consider the lyrics Liverpool fans sing at the beginning of a game:
Written by Oscar Hammerstein and sung by Richard Rogers
When you walk through a storm
Hold your head up high
And don't be afraid of the dark
At the end of a storm
There's a golden sky
And the sweet silver song of a lark
Walk on through the wind
Walk on through the rain
For your dreams be tossed and blown
Walk on, walk on
With hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone
You'll never walk alone
Walk on, walk on
With hope in your heart
And you'll never walk alone
You'll never walk alone
As we approach Mental Health Day on October 10 “Walk on, with hope in your heart … You’ll Never Walk Alone.”