One of my favorite movies is Lincoln, the Steven Spielberg masterpiece which was based largely on the book Team Of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Having read a number of Lincoln biographies, I like to think it’s the most accurate portrayal of a president in popular media and appropriately garnered a Best Actor Oscar for Daniel Day Lewis.
In one of the most poignant scenes, Lincoln is gathered with cabinet members and political allies for a discussion about an upcoming vote on the 14th amendment, which would essentially end slavery in the United States. As the group argues about strategy, with many of them concerned about the political consequences of supporting the amendment and the difficulty of securing the votes necessary to pass it, Lincoln sits quietly at the head of the table turning red in the face. Suddenly, he slams his hand on the table commanding the attention of the entire room, and delivers a masterclass lesson in leadership.
One line in particular has always stuck with me: “See what is before you. See the here and now, that’s the hardest thing, the only thing that counts.”
Even as others continued to argue about the politics and optics and difficulty of accomplishing their goal, Lincoln understood that decades of political debate and bloodshed had led to that very moment. The time was now. The door of opportunity had cracked open for a brief period, but would soon shut.
His response to his team? “I am the President of the United States of America, clothed in immense power. You will procure me these votes.”
All moments are not created equal. Some moments are weightier than others. There are vector-changing opportunities that have the ability to change the entire trajectory of your organization or your own life. The hardest thing to do is to see the here and now. To see what’s in front of you. It’s far easier to follow a medium to long term strategy than it is to recognize the opportunity that’s right in front of you, especially when that opportunity doesn’t match your expectations.
The “safe” thing is to stick to the plan. The brave thing is to contend with reality.
Many people fail to recognize reality because they aren’t looking for it. They wear blinders to prevent them from experiencing the discomfort of disconfirming information. They only seek self-reinforcing data.
Others recognize reality but don’t respond with urgency. Instead, they defer action until a more convenient time. They stay busy following the plan even as the world around them changes. They succeed their way into failure.
Those brave leaders who are able to see reality and willing to respond change the world. (And, sometimes, they pay a price for doing so.)
How do you spot reality? Well, it’s not going to announce itself. For those leaders who have honed their intuition, it will often show up in a few more subtle ways:
What “tensions” are you feeling? At times, you may feel pulled in a few different directions with no clear answer. You know that you need to make a decision, but you don’t have a clear sense of the right thing to do. In these moments it’s always helpful to re-root yourself in a higher sense of meaning and purpose for your work. Paths often become clearer when examined from a bigger perspective.
What convictions are weighing upon you? We often know the right path to take even as we willingly walk the other direction. The pings of conscience ring loudly at first, but become less noticeable over time as we ignore them.
What confluent factors are lining up? There are a few moments in life and work where many forces flow into one another and create a perfect opportunity for action. This could be certain people coming into your life or resources becoming available, or even the emergence of a new technology that you are uniquely positioned to take advantage of.
The hardest thing to see is what’s in front of you. What’s here and now. Many people miss their greatest opportunity to contribute today because they are too busy following yesterday’s plans.
Be brave enough to contend with reality and do the work that you are uniquely capable of doing. Rise to your moment.
