Leadership, character and a cruise liner

If anyone was thinking about taking a cruise vacation, the news of the sinking of the Costa Concordia off the Italian coast had to make you think again. What occurs to me in this story is that there are basic fundamentals that we should be reminded of by this mishap.

Pay close attention. There are lessons to be learned here.

First, leadership is a valuable commodity that doesn’t always show itself in these type situations, but the void of leadership always sticks out like a sore thumb.

Second, judgment after the initial incident usually steers the subsequent events. In this story, it appears the captain not only exhibited poor leadership, but also very poor judgment in deciding to get off the ship ASAP, a move that’s viewed with more disdain than his navigational errors. So far, we’re pretty basic in our lessons, huh? Kindergarten/1st grade-type stuff.

Third, accountability. I haven’t heard the captain take responsibility for steering his ship into the rocks or for getting off the ship before hundreds of passengers. I did hear the story that he tripped and fell into a lift boat, so he stayed in it! Tell that to the families of the dead. If you can’t take the heat, stay off the bridge.

How far have we really come?

After watching the media coverage of this story and seeing all the cell phone videos and other lurid details, it occurs to me that we have really not gotten much better in these emergency situations than we were 100 years ago when the Titanic sank ... and that was April 1912!

Again, I think it comes down to leadership, character and being prepared — three items that were obviously left on the dock when the Costa Concordia launched.

Have a great weekend.

Kick ‘Em High!