Choices

In a consumer driven culture like ours choices are everywhere. Would you like your fast food meal regular or super sized? Do you take your coffee black or with cream and sugar? How about the size – short, venti, grande, or tall? Do you prefer PC or Mac, text message or email? Every day we are faced with hundreds of choices about what to watch, read, wear, eat, or drink. The options can be overwhelming.

Leaders face choices too, most with implications that are far more significant than the flavor or size of their favorite hot beverage. The road we travel includes forks in our path. Many times these two directions represent significantly different options and outcomes. One may seem easier; where choices made result in quick fixes, nearly instant financial gains, and immediate recognition. The other promises only long-term gains, few accolades, and plenty of obstacles along the way. How do you choose?

The latter option is often the path leading to significant work. It is a choice that represents doing what is right, telling the truth, treating others fairly, challenging the status quo, and initiating change. Often this course means a lonely journey without the support of colleagues and friends. It may result in lost business, animosity from those who benefit from the systems being challenged, or suffering the slings and arrows of public opinion.

Why would a leader choose to follow this challenging road? Perhaps it is because of a personal stake in the outcome. Emotions, like anger or compassion, may fuel a desire to do the right thing. Maybe leaders who eschew the easier choices are simply following their destiny, living a call they have embraced and promised to follow. It’s hard to imagine that living out one’s purpose in life is always going to be easy and simple.

I suppose that following a comfortable path is a temptation for leaders because there is less at stake, at least on the surface. Who doesn’t enjoy recognition or financial rewards? Yet the legacy of leaders who take the hard and high road is more fulfilling. Their strength of character and integrity attract others to share in the journey. They model courage, service, and effectiveness that remain as gifts to their organizations and communities long after they are gone.

So the next time you face a crossroad in this journey we call life, think carefully about who is there with you (employees, customers, vendors, the voiceless in society). Your choice will likely impact them as much as it will affect you. Hard path or easy one – it’s still up to you. Choose wisely.