REJECTION AND HOW THE GREATS TRIUMPH OVER IT

by Paul Cormier, President, Cormier Strategy Advisors Inc.

June 2014

What do Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill have in common in addition to being widely viewed as the greatest elected leaders in their respective nations’ histories?  In their political careers they both lost elections numerous times. Churchill lost election to the British House of Commons five times, not to mention two general elections after World War II and Lincoln lost elections to the Illinois State Assembly, the US Senate (twice) and the nomination to be the Republican vice presidential candidate in 1856.

History chronicles individuals who were perceived to be at the top of their professions but who earlier were rejected harshly (defeated by the electorate or fired from important and prestigious positions or placed in some sort of exile from power).  It is interesting to observe that so many of those we perceive to be the greatest were at one point rejected.  What does this teach us?

The obvious lesson is the importance of perseverance or tenacity or determination.  Those who give up the dream clearly won’t succeed while those who get up after being knocked down at least have a chance.  But perseverance is clearly not the whole story – it is necessary but not sufficient if you want to achieve something greater.

There seems to be two additional elements that are present when the rejected go on to triumph.  Firstly a lot of great leaders were fundamentally right when rejected but their time had not yet come.  The audience was not yet ready for their message.  Whether it was Churchill’s call for British rearmament to prepare for the Nazi threat of war which Britons did not want to recognize or Lincoln repeatedly identifying the threats to the union posed by slavery (he first did this more than twenty years prior to the Civil War), these were leaders with views people did not want to contemplate (yet).  These leaders held steadfast to their core beliefs even after rejection.

The second element is the ability of great leaders to reflect on defeat and determine where adjustments may be made and new paths charted, while protecting core values and philosophy.  A good example is Pete Carroll, the coach of the Super Bowl Champion Seattle Seahawks.  He was twice fired as an NFL head coach in the 1990s.  He took a year after his second dismissal to self-reflect and study others who succeeded.  He determined that his core philosophy of building a winning team by identifying and emphasizing the unique talents of the individual was sound.  He would continue to emphasize positivity, competitiveness and fun.  But to succeed he needed more control than he would get coaching an NFL team, so he went back to the College coaching ranks.  He created a winning program and won a national championship at the University of Southern California and then brought that tested and now proven philosophy back to the NFL in Seattle who, frustrated by years of mediocrity, would provide him the freedom to work that consistent philosophy.

This tells us two things.  One is that rejection often is only a temporary setback if we take advantage of these opportunities to self-reflect, determine if our thinking is sound, course correct when necessary and persevere.

The second is that smart people should never assume that an individual who has suffered the rejection of defeat or dismissal should be written off.  Often they are just not in the right place at the right time.  Think what might have happened had Lincoln not been US President or Churchill British Prime Minister.  Maybe if we ourselves are more open-minded and honest we might see that in a lot of cases the right place and time is here and now.

Paul Cormier is President of Cormier Strategy Advisors Inc., a firm which provides clients with strategic consulting, project management and short-term management services.