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7-24-09

 

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”

Coach John Wooden

 

 

Class Act

 

My 1999 Mercedes ML320 was hauled away today as scrap after being hit hard from behind and totaled two weeks ago.  But despite 11 years of driving and over 140,000 miles, the “tank” protected its driver from deadly harm.  Ironically, as dramatic as its ending was, this story is about the vehicle’s beginning.

 

My son, Ryan, was 9 years old in 1998 when his mom, seven months pregnant, was killed as she drove home from work by a man high on drugs who ran a stop sign at high speed.  The nightmare devastated our lives.  One of my earliest challenges after Cynthia’s death was getting Ryan into a car – he was terrified we would be hit too.  In his mind, he feared every intersection.  It was heartbreaking.

 

To help him, I told Ryan that we would find and buy the safest car on the road.  We would search out a vehicle that was a “tank” and made us both feel safe.  The answer was a Mercedes ML320 sport utility vehicle, a new SUV with all the right stuff to allay Ryan’s fears.  Our local Syracuse dealer, Romano Motors, had a website and so a few weeks after the funeral I sent a lengthy email describing the tragedy, sharing Ryan’s fears and the importance of this vehicle.  Thankfully, the right person read it.

 

A few days later, I went to Romano’s to test drive the vehicle.  I knew immediately the ML320 was exactly what Ryan and I had thought it would be – big, strong and safe.  Back on the lot, I told the salesman that I wanted one.  He laughed at me and explained that there was an 18 month waiting list for delivery of the ML320 and no way to get one any sooner.  I was crushed and I knew Ryan would be crushed.  Deflated, I said goodbye to the salesman who then asked me my name.  When I told him, he stopped and said, “Come with me, please!”

 

I followed him into an empty general manager’s office where I noticed a piece of paper on the GM’s desk.  It was a printout of my email marked with highlighter and notes written up the margin.  The GM, Jim Poissant, came in and introduced himself.  He told me how sorry he was about my wife’s death.  He said he could not imagine the pain of that experience and asked how Ryan was doing.  I told him each day was still a struggle and that he was going to be so disappointed at the news that we couldn’t get the ML320.  Jim looked me in the eyes and said, “We’re not going to disappoint your son.”

 

He told me that after he read my email he called Mercedes Benz of North America and shared the story with some senior leaders there.  He said they agreed that this was an extraordinary circumstance and that Mercedes would do whatever it took to help.  Jim said the instruction he got from his corporate leadership was simple, “Find Mr. Novak, and if he wants this vehicle, we will build him one.”

 

I was speechless.  Jim smiled and then asked me quite nonchalantly, “So, would you like them to build one for you and your son?”  “Yes,” I replied.  We shook hands and he said he would call me when the vehicle was ready.  Thirty days later, Mercedes delivered the vehicle – thirty days.  Jim personally took Ryan on a tour of the new SUV, showing him every gadget, button and talking about how safe it was.  I watched Ryan’s face as fear was replaced with excitement and I knew that we had turned one small corner in our long journey forward.  We traveled everywhere together in that car; racking up miles and memories.  When Ryan was 16, he learned to drive in that car, and later, it was his wheels for his first two years of college.  The ML320 showed its age many times but there was never a thought to trade or sell it – no way, it was far too special.  Jim is still the GM at Romano Motors and he was there yesterday when I retrieved a few things from the now totaled family relic.  We reminisced and I thanked him again for caring enough eleven years ago to make that purchase possible.  He said it was nothing.  I told him he couldn’t be more wrong.

 

 

LESSONS FOR LEADERS:

 

Leaders value the unexpected opportunity.  They not only see big moments, they create them.  Leaders don’t let current boundaries limit a team’s potential to be extraordinary.  Jim Poissant’s leadership style understands that excellence flows not from doing what is expected but from doing what no one expects.

 

Jim could easily have ignored my email as a sad story that he couldn’t do anything about.  He had plenty of sales, he had never met me; and helping me meant going up the chain to create an exception … there was no obvious reason to act on my behalf.  But the obvious is not what drives a leader.  Instead, Jim saw it as a chance for his organization to shine; for Mercedes to differentiate itself by going the extra mile.  Jim knew it wasn’t about making the sale; it was about making a difference.

 

In sharing my story with senior leaders at Mercedes headquarters, Jim pushed the case that Mercedes had a true opportunity to do something special.  His advocacy brought the situation to the attention of top decision makers who agreed with Jim and supported his actions.  This wasn’t one man striking out on his own to do something his organization opposed; it was one man offering his team a chance to unleash the best of what they already were – a class act.  And Mercedes responded – give an organization a chance to excel and the best always will.  Makes you wonder, who did you make a difference for today?

 

On the P&L for Mercedes in 1998, the sale of one ML320 to a customer in Syracuse, New York went completely unnoticed.  An obscure fraction of thousands of Mercedes employees knew their company had built one very special SUV that year and even they might have forgotten the act.  This wasn’t a big marketing campaign for Mercedes, there was no publicity or fanfare for what they did; they just did it quietly and without hesitation because that’s who they were as individuals and as an organization. 

 

But for a 9 year-old boy riding confidently in the passenger seat of his shiny new “tank” the sale was anything but insignificant.  In fact, it was transformational.  Every mile took him a little farther away from a tragedy that had changed his life; every trip was filled with a little less fear and a little more hope.  Tell me what that means to a father and you begin to get an idea of the importance of that one decision to go beyond what was expected to what was needed, and do it for someone they had never met. 

 

Jim Poissant went the extra mile.  Mercedes went the extra mile.  Not because they had to but because they wanted to.  In doing so, they raised the bar on what is possible when leaders care enough to step outside the lines and make something special happen.

 

 

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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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Summary of Services

 

Inspirational Speaker

Whether it is a conference keynote, featured presentation at a company gathering or a special event that needs a one-of-a-kind speaker, Christopher Novak’s “Conquering Adversity” message about the hero inside each of us is the ideal choice.

 

Leadership Coach and Training Facilitator

Christopher Novak brings creative, interactive and effective professional development right to your organization.  Experience working with more than 1,500 leaders and with a portfolio of curriculum designed to elevate your team’s skills, behaviors and attitude, Chris can take your training efforts to a new level of effectiveness.

 

Pirates of St. Croix

Our top-rated training program, this themed-learning experience seamlessly blends classic team leadership concepts with the mystique of buccaneer genre.  The objective is to introduce participants to characteristics of an effective team leader including communication, vision, delegation, problem-solving, diversity and initiative.  This is training people love to participate in.

 

Executive Coaching

One-on-one coaching or mentoring is one of the best ways to sharpen executive skill sets and increase overall leadership effectiveness.  We’re experienced in maximizing top level leadership potential – coaching individuals or working with senior teams.

 

Christopher Novak

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