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The crucible reveals the honest us. In crisis, there is no time to hew new habits, you rely on the ones you already have for better or worse. We react to pressure as we are...there is little time to think and adjust.
That's why crisis is the great reveal.
Last week, Joe Philbin, the Green Bay Packers' offensive coordinator lost his twenty-one year old son in a tragic accident; Michael drowned in the partially frozen waters of the Fox River in Oshkosh, south of Green Bay.
The Packers had a play-off game Sunday.
Head coach Mike McCarthy said all the things you're supposed to say at a time like this. That life is more important than football, the Packers are like a family and that Joe Philbin will get as much time away from the team as he needs. (He came back and coached in the Packers' loss on Sunday.)
But there was one additional detail that reveals the type of leader McCarthy is. Something that seems so trivial, but says so much about the man, and the affection he's engendered from those he leads.
With Philbin missing time, someone had to perform his duties. McCarthy's immediate reaction was to take on all of the duties himself-not to pass them off. Not to dump them on anyone else. To lead by example. To be the first one in. To not ask of others what he could do himself. To add pressure to himself first and not his staff.
What's also revealing is his staff's response. They told him no. And on their own volition, they took Philbin's responsibilities and divvied them up amongst themselves, their affection for their head coach revealed in the gesture.
That seemingly insignificant interaction tells me a world of information about how McCarthy leads, and the culture he has produced on his team. The relationship between the leader and those led.
Reactions reveal what we truly are. In quiet times we can think, gather ourselves and choose a path, even one that is counter to our normal habits. But pressure, immediacy and urgency are different. We are what we are then.
The good news for all of us is that reactions can change, and by that, we can change who we are.
Reactions are simply automatic responses that were formed like any habit, by pure repetition. Any old habit can be broken. Any new habit can be formed. I have coached many leaders over the years, and I see it time and time again. It takes painstaking time, effort and patience, but it can be done.
So take heart Packer fans. You lost a game, but you have a leader. With McCarthy it would seem you have many more wins in your future. Which is tough for me to admit since I am...you know...a Bears' fan
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