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4-13-09

 

“True heroism is remarkably sober, very un-dramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.”

Arthur Ashe

 

Servant Leader

 

Steve and Daphne Valentine were driving on the interstate two weeks ago returning from New Jersey where they attended the 70th birthday of Steve's father.  Traveling north at 7:15 p.m. on Interstate 81 near Binghamton, they noticed a van began moving erratically in front of them.  It rolled slowly down the shoulder of the road, before abruptly veering into traffic.

 

Steve, a safety consultant with an environmental company, was driving when the van lurched out in front of him.  He pushed down on the horn, and pulled into the fast lane to pass the van.  As they went by, Daphne, looked into the driver's side window.  A woman was slumped back in the seat, apparently unconscious.  A little girl was holding onto the wheel, blowing the horn with her other hand, and shouting something the Valentines couldn't hear.

 

Steve had seconds to react.  He pulled his car onto the inside shoulder, along the grassy strip in the middle of the interstate.  He jumped out and waited for a few cars to rocket past.  Then he sprinted across the I-81 interstate.  He ran after the van.  It was in drive, but no one was giving it gas so Steve managed to catch up and to yank open the door.

He pulled himself in and hit the brakes.  Behind the van, another driver pulled over who had already called 911.  He and Steve helped the little girl get into the car with Daphne and the Valentine children.  Then the two men ran back to see what they could do for the victim.  She was not breathing.  She had no pulse. They feared the worst.

Police arrived shortly thereafter, felt for a pulse and finding none began using defibrillators to shock the victim's heart and followed with CPR.  Moments later, a crew arrived from an ambulance service and paramedics rushed the woman to a nearby hospital.

Steve and Daphne waited behind, with their children and the little girl, until the child's father came and took her home.  The Valentines resumed the long ride home where they got a welcome phone call from a sheriff who told them the 49-year-old victim was alive.

What had happened was this.  Mother and daughter were on their way home, traveling at interstate speeds, when the mother collapsed.  The daughter, age 11, said that she reached over and grabbed the wheel with one hand.  With her other hand, she unsnapped her mother's seat belt, which allowed the girl to shove her mother's foot off the gas pedal. The child then did her best to steer the van to the side of the road.

Yet, the brave fifth grader, couldn't reach the brake. Car after car went speeding past.  No one looked over as the little girl pushed down the horn, held grimly to the wheel and screamed for help.  Not far away, Steve and Daphne were hurrying along, worried that they might be late to where they thought they should be … but soon to discover they were right on time for where they needed to be.

 

Adapted from story by S. Kirst, Syracuse Post Standard, 3-1-09

 

 

LESSONS FOR US AS LEADERS:

 

Nothing in this inspiring story of life-saving action surprises me.  I know Steve Valentine personally.  In fact, I hired him to be part of my team when I was head of human resources at Syracuse China Company.  We needed a strong, innovative leader to spearhead our plant safety program and Steve brought all of the expertise and leadership qualities any company would be proud to have on staff.  He was exceptional in every respect and his professionalism, knowledge and warm personality made an unmistakable impact from his first day.  So it was not surprising to me when I read this story that Steve would identify a dangerous situation, take immediate and decisive action and end up saving lives.  You see heroes are just ordinary people who rise in the moment to do extraordinary things.

 

What a lesson Steve gives all of us as leaders.  The most potent perhaps is being prepared to serve – having a mindset 24-7 that is wired to serve others before self.  We talk in training sessions about the servant-leader as the pinnacle of professional development yet many people struggle to understand the concept of leading through service.  Servant-leadership isn’t subservient leadership; it isn’t abdicating responsibility but rather embracing it and focusing your talents so completely that your actions are not forced or scripted but simply a reflection of your nature, of a commitment to do the right thing all the time, every time.  That’s Steve Valentine’s brand of leadership. 

 

You see, in a situation measured in seconds, you don’t have time to sort out options, ponder pros and cons of involvement or consider what’s in it for you.  In situations defined by the split second, you get no second chances.  For leaders like Steve who are the ultimate servant-leaders, there is no thinking, there is only an instinct to act and the courage to execute.  Even driving his family down the interstate, Steve was prepared to serve.  How prepared are you?  How committed are you to becoming a servant-leader?

 

The actions Steve took were exceptionally brave but he would be the first to tell you that what he did was not heroic.  He would be the first to shrug off the waves of praise that now rightfully accompany his deed and say that he did what anyone who recognized the need would have done.  Steve is a humble man and that is another of his outstanding leadership qualities and another lesson for all of us as leaders.  For the servant-leader, it is always about something bigger than self.  Driver after driver sped by the weaving van and left the lives of a mother and daughter hanging on a prayer until one man answered it.  Steve had the vision to see the need, the courage to act in the moment and the humility to know that he was put on that road at that spit second of his life to make a difference for someone else.  The lesson for us as leaders is to realize we are all called to that same duty – a different road but a common purpose.  Whose hero will you be today?

 

 

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Christopher Novak is an author, international speaker and leadership coach whose signature book and keynote, Conquering Adversity, has inspired tens of thousands of people.  To learn more about his speaking services or to sign-up to receive more inspirational emails (if you were lucky enough to have someone forward this to you), visit his website, www.ConqueringAdversity-speaker.com.

 

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