Leadership is about having the courage to make hard decisions and live with the consequences.

Today I had breakfast with a friend whose organization is closing its doors after many years of operation. That must have been a very hard decision to make but also a wise one. They took the decision early and are able to responsibly wrap things up. So often organizations just run out of money and are forced to close, when they don’t have the available cash to pay out staff and suppliers. That is irresponsible. This organization is having difficult conversations, facing the real situation, talking through all the implications and making clear plans out of a calm, reasoned headspace, and not out of panic. That is true leadership.

I had a staff member many years ago who was able to relocate his family to Cape Town because he started working for us. I felt responsible for his whole family. Early on I knew it wasn’t going to work, but I naively let myself believe that it would get better, so I poured my time and resources into making it work. I also couldn’t admit that I’d made a mistake. So we struggled – I was annoyed a lot of the time, and he felt frustrated. Eventually, he left us and a year later I chatted to a friend who is a recruiter, who apparently had placed this guy after he left us. They absolutely love him at his new place of work. What I learned was that while I thought I was doing what was best for him, giving him a paycheck, what he actually needed was to be let free to find the ‘right’ place for him.

Sometimes in our desire to ‘help’ we actually hold people back.

So, what tough decision are you putting off? Are you scared of the repercussions, what others will think of you and the decision, and how it will impact other people? I hope that you can find the courage that I’ve had to learn the hard way and take the leap.

Because sitting in the space of ‘it will get better soon’, doesn’t allow you to be open to the ‘so much more’ that is waiting on the other side of that decision.