By Lorene Rasmussen

Reading and writing are two things I enjoy very much, even though they don't always come easily.  Hopefully, this year you benefited from both, since my articles consisted of informal book reviews.  We started off with outliers, discussing what makes them successful. We looked at how body language fills in the gap where words fail. We determined the importance of building mutual trust in relationships. We had coffee with Howard Shultz.  We listened to the last lecture of Randy Pausch. We journeyed to London to visit the Queen, to see how she led her queendom during an economic recession and war. Then, in September, we published Phil's book, and last month we concluded that life without margins creates chaos.

Now it's December and being "one with the Yule-tide," I thought about reviewing The Leadership Secrets of Santa Claus, which would be clever and timely given the season.  Then, while in my favorite coffeehouse, I purchased the newly released book, One: How Many People Does it Take to Make a Difference?, and devoured it as if it were a gingerbread latte. But alas, I decided to deviate from nonfiction and revisit a holiday favorite, "It's a Wonderful Life."

Working in leadership development and reading nearly an unlimited supply of articles on the topic, it is apparent to me that we are all looking for the perfect metaphor to teach leadership principles. It has been proven (by someone, somewhere) that story-telling is the best medium to communicate. So if you don't mind indulging me for just a few moments, I will attempt to share some undeniable lessons from this well-known classic, as soon as I wipe away my tears and replenish the eggnog.

We need to dream BIG dreams.  George Bailey always had big dreams!  He wanted to travel the world, get his education, and build great bridges and magnificent skyscrapers.  George's vision was bigger than himself, and he was sure it was going to be achieved outside the mundane, daily routine of his father's Building and Loan Company, and certainly beyond the city limits of his sleepy hometown of Bedford Falls.

Of course, you know the story . . . George did not leave Bedford Falls.  On the night of his brother Harry's graduation, their father has a stroke, and George is stuck taking care of the business.  George makes a deal that as soon as Harry returns from college, he will take over the Building and Loan, and then George would get the chance to go to school. But while Harry is away, George falls in love with Mary, a hometown girl, and life is forever altered for the young visionary.

What happened to the BIG dreams? George, even without recognizing it, began dreaming in different directions, directions that on the outside may not have looked like the monuments he originally envisioned, but ones that resulted in monumental changes for his community.

We need to be a part of something more significant than our own agendas. George's BIG dream becomes the development of Bailey Park, an affordable subdivision, so the working class of Bedford Falls could move out of Mr. Potter's high-rent slums and into the American dream of owning a home.  The subdivision was definitely not the great bridges or magnificent skyscrapers that George dreamed about; instead, it became something greater and more magnificent, as hard-working families were able to traverse the chasm between renting and ownership.

Bailey Park, albeit a great place for families to experience the American dream, was not the idyllic setup for all the citizens of Bedford Falls.  For Mr. Potter, the town banker and slumlord, Bailey Park was a threat to his way of life as his rentals became vacant with each new home built.  Mr. Potter was a greedy, cruel, old man who never liked the Bailey Building and Loan Association, and sought to close it down on more than one occasion. Nothing would stop him from sabotaging the ideals of the little company and its leaders.

Adversity helps define what's important. It was Christmas Eve 1946, when George's absented-minded Uncle Billy inadvertently left the Building and Loan's $8,000 deposit wrapped up in the newspaper he had been reading. Potter later finds the paper with the cash inside and decides to keep it. That same day, a bank examiner discovers the discrepancy and accuses George of embezzling the money. With nowhere else to turn but his enemy, George goes to Mr. Potter for assistance. Potter refuses George's plea for help, leaving him with the false assumption that he is worth more dead than alive.  

Now at the end of his rope, George cries out, "I wish I had never been born!" Standing on the edge of the bridge preparing to jump into raging water, George hears a man screaming for help. Instead taking his own life, he dives in to rescue the man below.  That man was none other than George's guardian angel, Clarence Odbody, who was sent to save him from a horrible decision.

Clarence grants George's wish and takes him on a journey back through time, allowing George to see what life would have been like if he had never existed.  Bedford Falls would have been Pottersville, an undesirable place to live; Bailey Park would never have been developed; Mary would have become an old spinster librarian; brother Harry would have died in an accident since George was not around to save him; their mother would have run a cheap boarding house after their father died; and the list went on and on.  George gets to see that his life counted for something, which remaining in his hometown and making it a better place for everyone truly was the most important work he could have ever accomplished.

George begs Clarence to let him live again, and the two return to the same place where they met.  George quickly runs to his home, which is filled with friends and family who had come together to collect enough money to bail out George and the Building and Loan.  Seeing how many lives George has touched, his brother Harry proposes a toast, "to the richest man in town!"

It took a cataclysmic event for George to see actually how BIG his dream had been. In the end, the $8000 cash seemed minuscule compared to the investments of trust, compassion, and friendship he had made in his fellow townspeople.

Everyone can make a difference.  Have you ever wondered what life would be like without you? How have you contributed to the organization of which you are a part?  If you did not show up tomorrow, who would fill your role? George Bailey had the fictional privilege to travel through time with an uninvited guest to answer these compelling questions.  Since taking a trip with a quirky little angel named Clarence isn't really an option for us, we need to rely on colleagues, friends, and family members to reflect on the distinguishing qualities that set us apart from others and make us unique. In return, we need to take the time to share how these same people have made an investment in our lives as well.

Real change demands radical choices. Perhaps it is true that, "leadership is about giving meaning to the past, clarifying the present, and providing direction for the future."  If you, like George Bailey, want to exclaim, "It's a Wonderful Life," then this might be the right time for you to consider what changes you would like to see in 2010, and begin making choices accordingly.

Thank you for joining me this year as we looked at a variety of books and stories.  I trust you have read something throughout the year that has challenged, encouraged, and inspired you to be all you can be in the leadership role in which you find yourself today.

May this season be filled with all things that urge you to say, "It's a Wonderful Life!"