So the other day we saw the movie “Darkest Hour”,  a movie about Winston Churchill that took place during the month of May, 1940 right after he was selected as Prime Minister of England. While my personal impression of Churchill was one of great leadership during a dark time in our world history, I did not know that many of his contemporaries accepted his appointment with some dread because of some bad decisions he had made in the past.  So bad that some considered him crazy.  But Churchill took his responsibility seriously and when it looked like England was going to lose its entire military at Dunkirk, he came up with another crazy idea.  That crazy idea saved thousands of lives.  So was he just lucky that time or was he considered crazy because he thought so differently than others?

History tells us that great leaders take risks, but not without much soul searching and weighing the costs.  Because leaders know that others depend on them, not just for the big things but the little things as well.  Servant leadership we call it.  And serving is the wonderful part of leadership, where you get to do those things for others, helping them with issues, making time for discussions.  The hard part of leadership is having to make decisions, decisions you know may help some, but not all.  Decisions based on written polities that must be upheld.  Decisions that you truly believe will make things better in the long run but must be tested over time.  And you have to deal with the fallout of such decisions, the anger, the distrust, the unbelief.  It either helps you create a thicker skin or discourages you from leading.

I think when we look at those we consider “leaders” today, we judge who they are from what we can see on the outside.  Very few people are privy to what real leaders are thinking and feeling because while I think all great leaders surround themselves with people smarter than they are to consult with, there are usually only a handful of people that leaders share their lives with. There were many times during a rough time in my leadership experience that people said they were impressed by how calm and professional I was.  They had no idea that behind closed doors there were plenty of tears and lots of Pepsid on hand.  I second guessed everything I did, cringed at every email I received and braced myself when the phone rang.  And what I did was not really earth shattering or life changing.  It did affect teachers and students and some of them struggled because of those decisions.  And for a person who only wants to do the right thing for everyone, this is so difficult.

It is no wonder no one wants to serve in a leadership capacity.  There are plenty of ways to serve others without putting yourself in a place where people scrutinize everything little thing you do or say or even wear.  They look up every little skeleton in your background and family tree and can google things to make you look like you’re contradicting yourself on a minute by minute basis.  Why would anyone in their right mind want to lead on a state or national level?  Notice  I said “right mind”.  This is where I believe the crazy comes in.  People who actually end up running for office or other leadership positions must be crazy because no sane person would subject themselves to the insanity that our culture, media and social media has become.

So, going back to Churchill, here’s the interesting part of Churchill’s appointment.  He was asked to be Prime Minister only because the Prime Minister before him had done nothing.  He wouldn’t make decisions.  He was given a vote of no confidence and so another man, a man who was considered slightly “crazy” was appointed because he would DO something.  They were willing to vote for the unknown because the known wasn’t doing anything.  He was being too safe, trying not to rock the boat.  And a great leader is going to rock the boat once in a while.

I’ve heard that if you’re not ruffling any feathers or making anyone mad, you’re not leading – or doing your job.  A leader listens to every side of a situation but ultimately must make decisions and not everyone is going to agree with them.  It’s how you deal with the adversity, with grace and humility, thinking of others and not yourself, that makes someone a great leader.  Great leaders aren’t infallible, they’re human.  But they’re willing to step out of their comfort zone to try to make things better for others because others come first.

So, are real leaders crazy or just considered crazy by those who are afraid or unwilling to serve themselves?  I don’t know the answer to this, but I’m grateful to people who are willing to step up and serve to the best of their ability.  It challenges me to think outside the box and maybe be a little more crazy myself.