The fall of 1987 was a grand time.
It was truly the good old days for me. A high school senior, a car to go anywhere, search for the right college with so many options within reach, and, for the first time in more than six decades, my hometown Minnesota Twins won the World Series.
It was even more cherished because it was so unexpected.
The parade was massive – an easy choice to cut classes, skip practice, head downtown with friends, and gather with hundreds of thousands to celebrate. Within feet of our heroes, all but reaching out to touch the trophy, high fives all around, and a beautiful day before the cold weather of fall set into the Great North. A lifetime memory.
Fast forward to yesterday – same setting, different city; same celebration, different sport; same gathering, tragically different outcome. In Kansas City at least one is dead, more than 20 have been shot, and almost a dozen kids are hospitalized.
As we send thoughts and prayers to friends and families, stars and strangers alike we are again tasked to respond.
There will be time to discuss public policy thou, candidly, nothing is going to evolve quickly. It is likely more urgent to consider safety enhancements to our facilities. And, most important, we must support our staff. Let’s not fool ourselves, it is more than those who were at the event or live in the area. This tragedy – shattering a celebration – will reverberate across our country, Chiefs fans, 49er fans, all of us.
A hit to mental health. A diminishment to wellbeing. A shaken sense of security. At a time when Johns Hopkins Medicine reports 26% of American adults are struggling with their mental health.
The Question: What, as leaders, do we do? The Answer: Act! Act Now!
We can check in with our staff – and our families – and ourselves about reaction to this tragedy.
We can create safe spaces and places within our organization to discuss this event and more broadly the lack of safety and security in our society – physical and otherwise.
We can assure benefits support our staff – is there really parity between mental health and medical coverage in our insurance offerings.
We can establish new systems of support – how about free, unlimited mental health therapy for all staff. It is not a dream. It can be an affordable reality.
We can think anew about 40-hour work weeks, flexible schedules even for in-office environments, and living wages+.
We can, and must, speak out about these tragedies that affect our staff and our organizations.
We can, and must, take care of ourselves. What’s your self-care plan? It is probably time to dust it off and update it.
Being a leader is always a challenge. It is also isolating. Very isolating, especially in dealing with issues like this. Check out how you can get the support you need, as a leader, here.
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