Sarah's Story

My world has always been full of animals.?Sarah came to us unexpectedly, and her story is full of lessons about how to live life, and be a great leader.

We got Toby in May that year, thinking he’d be 35-40 pounds.?He’s topped out at 88 lbs. (surprise), and when he was around 55 lbs. we decided we’d better get him a playmate who could run with him, since Caleb is only 14 lbs.?We were pondering this situation when, one evening, we saw a Facebook post from Toby’s original rescuer.?

FIRE!

Sara and her friend Tobi have a private, in-home rescue group called DASHDog. Our dogs are named after them.?Between the two of them at that time there were 16 foster dogs.?The post was an anguished cry for help, because Sara’s house had just burned down that night.?They needed help housing some of the fosters, because more were coming the next week!?

So, the first surprise was that we went ahead and accepted Sarah sight unseen. I loved her picture, and her story. We agreed to foster her until the situation settled down. Toby is fabulous with other dogs, and the plan at that time was to continue to foster various DASHdogs.?Sarah had been living on the streets of Waco, TX her whole life. When I want to get her, she’d only been in a home for about 30 minutes total.?She’s smart and wants very much to please, so she learned quickly at puppy school.?She’s a very well-behaved dog, answering all the commands and incredibly loyal. This is the first lesson. No matter what someone’s background is, they deserve a chance to learn and grow. As long as they have the desire to learn and adjust, it can work out very well.

Peanut butter and Jelly!

Then, when we introduced her to Toby, we were amazed at how they were two peas in a pod, salt and pepper, peanut butter and jelly – so different but so great together. They fell in love immediately. Within a few days, we knew they should be together, and we realized we were foster failures. That’s the second lesson: plans are good, but adaptability is important too.?Sometimes the end result comes out even better than you thought it would with your original plan!

Never give up!

Now, three years later, DASHDog is thriving and helping more dogs than ever. Sara and Tobi (the humans) are still out there saving the dogs, and we do our part when we can financially or by helping spread the word on social media about the latest batch of dogs needing homes.?That’s the third lesson:?even when disaster strikes, we can keep pressing on, fighting the good fight, and sticking to our mission. If we do, there will be many rewards for us on the other side. ?

Lisa H. Harrington, CPCU, CAE, CAM, AAI, AAIM, AAM, AIP [CRIS, CAE] is the founder of Abiding Strategy?, a consulting practice specializing in all elements of business strategy. As a Keynote, Author, Strategy Coach and Vistage Chair, her vision is to bring Joy in the Workplace as we Build Better Bosses together. She has three decades of experience as a leader, author and trainer. For more information about Lisa or her books, please visit www.AbidingStrategy.com.