One of the best leaders I have ever known was a 27-year-old rafting guide who took me and my five closest friends in a tiny paddle raft through class 10 rapids on the Grand Canyon. Not only were we considerably older than our captain, Andrew, but one of our party was an Olympic paddler. In the first 5 days as we prepared for the ultimate challenge of Lava Falls, Andrew won our trust buy guiding us expertly through gnarly rapids, by letting us learn from the experience of turning over (we were sure we could best that 20 foot wave), and by trying out our skills in rapids that were less treacherous.

When we approached Lava Falls (the largest rapid in North America) we knew that the water was very high, that the usual path through that rapid was gone because of the water flow, AND that we were a team with ultimate confidence in our captain. As we committed ourselves to inescapable pull of the water, we saw the boat in front of us fall into a 20 ft hydraulic. While we watched the much larger boat flip over and over in the rapids, we were concerned about the safety of our fellow captain and could easily see that we had a major change facing us. We also knew that Andrew knew his team and had deployed us in the positions that best fitted our skills. We knew that we were completely committed to each other.

As we were drawn into the roar of the rapid and were just over this 20 foot hydraulic, a wave that seemed to go through my ears knocked me to the center of the boat. Andrew, who was in the middle of giving commands to turn left immediately, stopped. He said to me in a completely calm voice “It’s okay, Jodi. Take your time, you will be ok,” and then went back to screaming commands. His calm and caring style allowed me to safely get back to position and add my power to the successful completion of the rapid and the rescuing of the other boat.

Leadership is both about task and relationship activities. Andrew was an expert on rafting the Grand Canyon (task activities) but he also knows how to take care of his team members (relationship activities) to help each one deliver the very best .We would have followed Andrew into any river situation that he asked.

What are you doing today that helps others deliver at their best? That is what leadership is about.

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