Trauma makes leaders

Abraham nearly had to sacrifice his son. Noah had to build a boat and endure ridicule. Moses was abandoned at birth. David was hunted by Saul. Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers.

What is it about trauma that creates great leaders?

I don’t think it’s the trauma itself that creates leaders, but the recovery.

You see, as you work through trauma you get to know yourself better. You build resilience and mental toughness. As you become more comfortable in your own skin, people are attracted to your confidence. You care less about what other people say and think.

Thing is, not everyone works through their trauma. Some wallow in it, wasting their life, stuck. They refuse to grow, to learn, to become their potential.

Of course, working through the trauma is not easy. It is painful. Most of us spend some time wallowing. Too often, clawing out of the muck is two steps forward, one step back, every day a struggle. Nihilism rules the day, depression seeps into our dreams. Loneliness is our companion, sarcasm and wry humor (and perhaps a little whiskey) providing a touch of relief.

But that struggle is the secret. The answer to our question.

Leadership requires making hard decisions and living with the results. Being judged by everyone who sits on the sidelines, afraid to make those tough calls. Are we to think that Job did not have experience with adversity? Should we assume that when Peter asked to be hung upside down on his cross that his life had not prepared him for such a request?

Trauma is awful. It’s not fair. It ruins lives.

It also makes you who you are. If makes you strong, resilient, brave, driven. It will make you a leader if you choose that path. And it will destroy you if you let it.