Hope is the belief that the future is better and there’s a way to get there.
Blake, my 9 year-old son, sitting in the front seat of the car, staring out the window said, “Dad, when I grow up, I want to be a Coach like you… and travel with you.”
I don’t tell you this so you’ll think I am a great Dad. I’ll be honest; I have my doubts. Not in Blake, but in what I’m giving him. You probably know this from raising kids – it’s so day-to-day that it’s easy to feel lost in it. Sometimes I find myself thinking, “What am I doing? Is it working?”
A CEO said something in a call that I’ll never forget, “James, I told myself this week that I am not enough.” He paused and then I could hear it click for him, “After years of trying to prove myself – I finally have hope.”
Now, I have a Master’s degree in asking questions, but this one was not my best. I was skeptical, “How’s that hope?”
This CEO didn’t hesitate, “When I don’t have to prove myself as a leader, I finally have space for something more.”
That’s true. So much of our days are spent on what we’re doing – my meetings, my business, my responsibilities, my stuff to do. We’re saturated with what we’re doing. Hope… is that there’s more. More here than just what I can do.
When leaders have confidence beyond their ability – hope and leadership become synonyms. No longer proving what they can do, leaders prove what others can do. This is my hope for Blake — that he goes far beyond what I can give him.