Fifteen hundred people lost their lives within two hours and forty minutes in the freezing waters of the North Atlantic. At -2 degrees Celsius, Hypothermia can cause death in 30 minutes.
April 15/1912. “By the time she struck the berg, the Titanic was deep inside an icefield she had received no less than six wireless warnings about that same day-the last one, which was rudely cut off, had come less than an hour before the collision.” (Daniel Allen Butler, “Unsinkable” The Full Story)
The wireless operators were not employees of White Star lines or the Titanic. Employed by Marconi, their personal priority was receiving tips from passengers, who were sending and receiving messages from home about their historic trip on the world’s greatest ship of the time.
Hindsight is great. We look back with 20/20 vision. Looking at the Titanic in detail we find numerous leadership challenges. An obvious would be ensuring that wireless communication concerning the safety of the ship had highest priority. Can we assume that Captain Smith’s highest priority that fateful night was passenger, crew and ship safety?
What about your church or mission? Do you have early warning systems in place? You may not face ice bergs, but you do face challenges and risks. Do you plot or monitor issues that warn you before they become threatening. In this weekly blog, we’ve illustrated the need to monitor the positives and growth issues to improve your organizational health.  The opposite is also true.

  • What do you monitor to assess your risk?
  • Do you monitor the average age of your people?
  • Is the average age of your leaders or Board members increasing?
  • Do your visitors return for a second visit?
  • Do you struggle to find capable and willing leaders?
  • Are your counselling sessions dealing with more negatives than positives?

By watching both the positive and negative you can protect your vision and organization.
Leadership is … monitoring the positives and negatives that impact your future.
Yours in Service,
Laurie D. Kennedy
Leadership Coach
Jethro Group
ldkjethrogroup@gmail.com