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"All leadership begins with the management of one's own health."
Edwin H. Friedman
Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix (p. 234)
If you have been reading our newsletters and whitepapers, it is no secret to you that Ed Friedman's book is central to our mission and work at HealingLeaders. Howard and I sometimes refer to it as our "bible." Inside the front page of my well worn addition is the above quote that I had penned for emphasis. Little did I know what meaning that quote would have for me personally and what was ahead for my own journey in proving its truth.
We hope you missed our May newsletter. We hope you noticed that there wasn't one. There are lots of excuses we could give for missing that deadline to our commitment to support you in your leadership but, the truth is, I had just run out of steam. I didn't have the energy to get it done; creative or otherwise. Last week I found out why.
I have been having some strange health symptoms over the past year. They were just little things. I had a slightly elevated temperature at the end of the day. I'd wake in the middle of the night wringing wet when the "fever" would break. I have lost 40 lbs in the past year. I have always been trying to accomplish weight loss but this time it just seemed too easy. My appetite was down. I exercise every day and it was feeling more and more like a chore. Instead of getting easier with each day, it was getting harder. My muscles felt weak and tired. My doctor and I were confused by these symptoms and he recommended a CT scan. I thought this was overkill but agreed to satisfy him telling him, "Who knows, I may be thanking you."
The good news is that the CT scan was a good idea. The bad news is that a 3 inch mass was discovered on my right kidney. It was a shock to get that call with the results. This past week has been a whirlwind of further testing and preparation. I am scheduled for urgent surgery in only a few days from now. The plan is to remove the kidney and the tumor with it. Depending on whether the tumor is malignant or not, close monitoring may be necessary for any possible reoccurrence. The bad news is I have to go through this operation. The good news is there is a good chance I will be cured and live a normal life.
This issue of the HealingLeaders newsletter is a bit of a placeholder. We didn't have the energy again to do a full edition. However, we wanted you to get something rather than nothing. If you are new to our readership, this might be a good time to check out past editions or read our whitepapers. If you are not new, it might be a good time for review. If you have not yet done so, I highly recommend you read Ed Friedman's book. If you have read it, I recommend you read it again. I myself will be practicing good leadership and taking care of myself. You can't give what you don't have. Leadership has to begin with self-care. I hope you will do the same.
Steve Geske |
