Leadership Lessons from an Amateur Sailor - Part 1

An old saying among seasoned mariners goes something like this: “There are two types of sailors; those that have run aground, and those that are about to.”

My experiences as captain of a sailing vessel have taught me so much about leadership that I believe learning the rules of the sea can prepare someone for business leadership - and vice versa. A couple examples will help to establish my argument.

My first major voyage as a captain was a long passage within the British Virgin Islands, on a 38 foot catamaran that I chartered from the largest marina in the region.  Our "float plan" was to explore the BVI on this boat for a total of 9 days.  On the third day of our charter, I studied my charts and was well aware we would be passing between two uninhabited islands sitting about 50 yards apart, before turning east into a large bay where we would be spending the night.

In studying these charts I was similarly aware that there where two smaller islands sitting in shallow water. The charts clearly said “Do not pass.” Armed with this knowledge I was confident in my ability to make this a safe and pleasant voyage.

For those unfamiliar with this region, the BVI is characterized by a series of islands in close proximity, nestled in the Caribbean, and generally considered the first “right of passage” for mariners before moving on to more challenging destinations. The only downside is that the winds are often not robust enough for very exhilarating sailing, but then for beginners this is the whole point.

Since the wind was more or less absent on this particular day, and we had a long way to go, I opted for the motor, and put my son in charge of driving the boat, while I went down below to wash up. I was quite proud of myself after having sailed successfully the past couple of days on this beautiful yacht (yes that is the actual boat in the pic with me at the helm), and enjoyed the feeling of being able to relax on a vessel with, for the moment, no responsibilities. On returning to the cockpit, I could see the two islands ahead of me that I found on the charts, marking the northernmost point of the journey.

I instructed my son to pass through the channel between the islands, thinking I would take over at that point and we would then raise the sails for the eastern portion of our journey, hopefully harnessing what little wind there was at the time.

On approaching, my son remarked that the water was looking pretty shallow, and the depth meter confirmed it. I told him to ignore the readings and to proceed ahead. This is when I passed from one type of sailor to the other.

It appears that when I was below, my son actually passed the islands that represented my target, and approached the two islands that were, in fact, not passable at all. My arrogance and naivety did not allow me to question the veracity of my son’s claims and I paid the price as a result. We had to be pulled off the rocks by a good Samaritan and thank goodness suffered no injury, but sacrificed a precious half day of my vacation with the time spent removing the boat from the rocks, and checking it for damage.   Assumptions I made about the environment, that I did not question when provided with good evidence, caused me to hit much more than a minor speed bump in my journey.

A sailor typically has a range of input variables to assist them in navigating: the depthmeter to ensure the keel does not hit bottom, wind vanes and “telltales” to indicate strength and direction of the wind, nautical charts, GPS systems and of course, the crew itself. I failed to take the time to understand the functions of the GPS system on this boat, which would have confirmed our location and the fact we were about to run aground, and I ignored the counsel of the crew. I had ample evidence around me that I was heading for disaster and I either ignored them or denied them.   In retrospect it is unbelievable I could have been so careless, but at the time my novice instincts as a mariner got the better of me.

In business, CEOs similarly have a range of supporting resources to aid them in navigation: balanced scorecards, real-time dashboards, members of management, and of course, customers. The CEO must take in the feedback from all these sources, and deem what is relevant versus what is not.

This first voyage informed my decision making in the early years of building my own company. Three management techniques were borne out of this experience:

• Surround yourself with skeptics. It's not pleasant to be surrounded by skeptics when you have a vision for how to move your organization forward that is being constantly challenged by your peers. However, most people around you do sincerely wish you to succeed, and they often can reveal “blind spots” in your decision-making ability. While the path of least resistance is to ignore skeptics, far more is be gained by honoring their point of view (which does not necessarily mean abdicating to it), and considering its implications. I had a few members of my crew that were skeptical of the course I laid down for our voyage – and I should have taken them into consideration.  I've since overcome the initial resistance to working with skeptics in my midst, and you know what?  I feel I've become a better person and more competent leader as a result.

For more on this approach to leadership, see any of my prior posts on the subject of “emotional intelligence,” such as “Do you have High EQ,” or “When Hawks and Peacocks Collide.”

• Manage by exception. When everything looks good on the surface, its time to manage by exception. If I am writing a contract, a speech, or a strategic plan, I will often ask a peer to look at it for specifically what is missing. By this time, I will already have had several sets of eyes to critique what I’ve already written. Management by exception requires a completely different mentality. It calls for letting go of signals that serve to confirm your instincts – which can merely offer a false sense of security – and focusing on critical elements that can take your strategy – in nautical terms your “course over ground” - in a completely different direction.

• Don’t fear or insulate yourself from technology. A CEO does not have the luxury of ignoring advances in technology. At the time I took the journey through the BVI, GPS devices on yachts were a fairly new phenomenon, and I was trained instead in chart navigation. The GPS is a near essential aid in navigation today, and while understanding how to read a map is still important for when or if GPS’s fail, there is a vast difference in the amount of information these two methods can supply. On taking possession of the boat, the GPS was operational but I failed to take the time to understand it, and it hampered many aspects of our journey, particularly after the first “speed bump,” because I began to question at that point (and my crew as well) every decision I was about to make.

In business, we are surrounded by new technologies, and every time I have tried to circumvent the time required to learn and leverage them, I have paid the price later, either by making false assumptions that would have been contradicted by the technology, or appearing misinformed by those that have already taken the time to learn and apply it. On every voyage I have taken since the BVI, I have insisted that the marina take me through all aspects of the GPS (as each product is different), and have obtained a PDF of the user guide to study well in advance.

If you’ve read any of my other posts, you’ll know I am a big fan of Portfolio Project Management Systems (PPMs), which guide a leader through to the identification and prioritization of improvement opportunities, and create a level of transparency and accountability that is critical to breakthrough improvement. For more information, read my post “Spreadsheets are Dead.” 

My sailing experience has taught me a lot about how to best run my own business. I hope it will help you to run yours. Whether you are CEO, department head, or an early careerist seeking to advance professionally, these are all practical lessons.

I have many more lessons of leadership from the sea. If I get at least 5 “thumbs” on this one, I will share another!

Yours in improvement,

Ian R. Lazarus, FACHE

President & CEO

Creative Healthcare

Go to Part 2 of Leadership Lessons from an Amateur Sailor

Creative Healthcare offers Emotional Intelligence Training, Lean and Six Sigma Deployment and the COMPASS? Quality Management System, a PPM system for all types of organizations dedicated to improvement. More info at www.creative-healthcare.com.