Being President, A Year In

 

A year ago this month I was named co-president of the economic consulting firm I've worked at since 2006.  The previous co-presidents did a great job making room for me to lead, so when people often ask "what's different now," I usually say not much in terms of the roles I inhabit, since I'd previously had opportunities to grow into my current position.  But there has been one noticeable difference.

I've said before that when I get together with my old friends who are pastors, they often ask me about business matters and I in turn ask them about how to take care of a congregation.  I think that's what's been new and fun and heavy about being a president, is carrying that responsibility of making sure you're people are thriving, both in their jobs as well as more broadly in a professional and personal sense.  At least that's what I aspire to for this workplace and for me as a leader in it.

Needless to say, the last 12 months have been a crazy time to carry that burden.  No one is doing well when a deadly pandemic touches every aspect of every person's life.  Shutting down travel and severely restricting how we move about the world has created unique stressors and an impaired ability to turn to the usual places to seek wellness and refreshment.  Add to this national political drama, racial trauma, and other adverse life events (physical and mental health issues, family members not doing well), and everywhere you turn somebody is struggling more than they ever have in their lives.

Our work is hard too.  We do complicated things, we strive to do them technically well and mindful of 1,001 nuances, and we face the pressures all professional services firms face in terms of satisfying our clients and meeting deadlines in a world of imperfect information, insufficient time, and many loud and opposing voices.  What we do is not inherently the walk in the park that many of us need in order to stay sane.  

It is important to me, and of course I care if I do it well or not but more important that I try, that I am available to the team, that they know I'm rooting for them and will do whatever I can to advocate for them, listen to them, and lift them up.  It's been a slog, these past 12 months and counting.  But I signed up for it, and I wouldn't want it any other way.