Of Wizards, Hobbits, Crystal Balls, and Pulled Hamstrings

There is a small statement made by Gandalf, the wise, old wizard in the The Lord of the Rings trilogy (LOTR) that caught me upon re-reading the trilogy a few years ago. I did not catch the statement the first time I read LOTR when I was a 13 year-old back in 1984--probably because 13 year-olds are immune to or not skilled enough to understand the many subtle, but important things going on around them.

In the second of the three books, The Two Towers, Gandalf states, "the burned hand teaches best." He made this statement in reference to something the young hobbit Pippin had done. Pippin, the ever inquisitive and mischievous hobbit, had picked up a Palantir (something like a crystal ball that allows users to communicate at a far distance with others who also are using one) and immediately came in contact with the Satan-like being Sauron. The powerful Sauron held Pippin in his gaze and attempted to extract information from Pippin about the intentions of his enemies. Gandalf came to the rescue of the young hobbit since he was unable to break away from the Dark Lord. Pippin's hands, due to grasping the Palantir and being held by Sauron were burned.

Gandalf's point to his statement, "the burned hand teaches best" indicates that experience is a powerful, if sometimes painful, teacher. Unfortunately humans do not often learn from the mistakes of others, often we learn the best from our own mistakes.

On Monday, May 5 I learned a couple valuable lessons through a "burned hand" experience. I did not burn my hand, I pulled a hamstring playing on my company's softball team. The hamstring pull was excruciatingly painful, one of the worst pains I have experienced in my entire life. I visited my family doctor early the next morning and was told the pulled hamstring was not too bad (yeah, she was not the one hurt) and would be healed in a few days. She said I should take 4 ibuprofen every eight hours for a few days as well as use alternating ice and heat.

So, what did I learn from this experience? I learned at least three things: 1) proper preparation reduces the risk of adverse outcomes occurring; 2) it is important to know when to swing and when not to, even if it is a strike; and 3) there are occasions when not expending 100% of effort is best.

First, proper preparation reduces the risk of adverse outcomes occurring. I simply did not properly warm-up ahead of time. I stretched some before the game, but I did not warm-up my legs by jogging around the field and moderately sprinting to ensure that my legs were not cold when I had to run. What was the result? Leg muscles that were not stretched-out and warmed-up when I needed to sprint to first base.

What does this mean for leadership? It means that leaders must be prepared when called into action. I learned this truth many years ago when I was in the Boy Scouts; their motto is "be prepared." While I knew this truth, I did not apply it to the softball game. Had I done that, I probably would not have suffered a pulled hamstring. Leaders must be prepared. No matter how much skill, confidence, or knowledge a leader has, it means nothing if he is not prepared when it comes time to lead.

Second, it is important to know when to swing and when not to, even if it is a strike. The first pitch to me was a ball. I swung on the second pitch even though it was high and probably also a ball. As a result I hit a dribbler down the third base line but in fair territory. I knew I hit it bad and thus had to try and run it out. Had I not swung on that ball the worst thing that would have occurred was my first strike. Interestingly, I played in a softball game yesterday, Monday, May 19 (my first game back) and noticed that one of the best hitters on the other team never swung at the first pitch. He laid the bat on his shoulder and just watched the pitcher and the pitch. I guessed he was sizing up the pitcher and seeing what he could throw. He didn't care that 3 out of the 4 times he was at bat he started off his at-bat with a strike. He waited patiently for his pitch and when it came he crushed the ball.

Discernment and judgment are two skills great leaders have. Great leaders just have a sense (call it intuition) about making the right decision. A great leader will pass up a good opportunity because he seems to know a better one is coming--even if it means he may not look good at first. He knows his pitch is coming and when it does he crushes it.

Third, I learned there are occasions when not expending 100% of effort is best. As a result of my first two mistakes--improper preparation and lack of discernment--I tried to run-out a bad hit, I gave it my all. This led to certain disaster. I only got about half-way to first when I felt my leg give-out. I took a couple more steps and then fell head-long into first base--out by a country mile. I gave 100% effort when I should have cut my losses. There are occasions when giving-up in the short-term leads to long-term success. What was my reward for giving it my all when clearly the risk of injury far outweighed the potential for success? Excruciating pain, inability to exercise for two weeks, and sitting on the sidelines for one game. Obviously the risk outweighed the benefit.

Part of the mission of this blog is to share my experiences in the hopes that others will learn something from them as I have. Experience is a good teacher, but it is better to learn from the experiences of others than having to "burn your hand" in order to learn.