In my many years of crisis management, I have found that people and companies tend to create the biggest problems for themselves when they act against their values. This can be anything from caving to peer pressure to taking a risk for short-term profit over long-term stability.
In my life, I’ve had to speak hard truths to Presidents, kings and CEOs. Each time, I’m being who I say I am. I’m living my values. Regardless of outside opinion, I’m doing what I think is right. And it doesn’t always happen in the spotlight.
When I meet with a new client, I always ask them to give me the unvarnished truth. I ask a lot of questions to get all of the facts, diving into the decisions they made that led to their current situation. That’s where I usually discover that at some point, they made choices contrary to who they claim to be.
Who you say you are should reflect your beliefs in what is right, and the values associated with it. This is why it’s important to do a lot of honest, deep self-reflection so you can establish your values, find your passions, and create a belief system you can rely on when you find yourself in crisis mode. You can live authentically—in good times and bad—because you know who you are, and are brave enough to do that every day, no matter what happens. It’s been my experience that compromising your values for opportunity is a dangerous step to take. Continuing to do so will eventually lead to exposure and unwanted consequences.
Nelson Mandela, one of my greatest heroes, personified the idea of being who you say you are. Born into a South African royal family in 1918, Mandela was a leader in the anti-apartheid movement, dedicating his twenties and thirties to combating the National Party’s racist whites-only government. He was arrested in 1962, and despite enormous pressure from the National Party to provide information on his fellow activists, particularly the group’s secret hideout, Liliesleaf Farm in a suburb of Johannesburg, Mandela held strong, never betraying the group’s trust. As a result, he was sentenced to life in prison, and served 27 brutal years split between Robben Island, Pollsmoor Prison, and Victor Verster Prison, locked up with the most dangerous criminals in the country. Today, he is seen as a towering international symbol of democracy and justice, having received more than 250 honors, including the Nobel Peace Prize.
I’ve always admired Mandela as a leader, because he never sacrificed his principles, even when most people—those both inside and outside of South Africa—considered him to be a criminal. He stood strong while others crumbled, and he was vindicated. Leaders who have the vision and strength to live their beliefs and withstand expedient answers are the ones who are most successful in the long run.
