Power of Love

When I was in sixth grade one of my favorite movies, Back to the Future, was released. I remember going to the Barrington Square Movie Theater and getting stuck in the front row because they were the only open seats in the theater.  Even with the terrible seats I was mesmerized by the sheer awesomeness of the movie. I have seen the movie dozens of times and I still get hooked by the opening sequence.

How can that opening not be a classic? The imagery and song are just perfect. The Power of Love by Huey Lewis and The News is just great. It brings a smile to my face every time I hear it. I guess in many ways the opening of the movie brings me back to my childhood where it seemed anything was possible. If you have seen the movie before you know Marty's parents need to get back together in order for Marty to save himself and his siblings from vanishing from existence. It is the power of love that surprisingly brings his dad and mom together again and saves Marty and his siblings from extinction.

What does all of this have to do with leadership? We need to tap into that power of love, not the way Huey Lewis describes in his lyrics, rather the idea of sacrifice, putting the needs of others before you own, creating the environment for others to grow and flourish. Yes, we need to love those we serve. I know that this can fly in the face of our me first society and working towards career and individual goals, but we are not successful unless our schools or work places are successful. That means we need to look out for the needs of our teachers and students and be responsive to those needs. When we let the power of love lead our nerdy, awkward, sometimes insecure selves, some absolutely amazing things can happen.

Taking a risk and being vulnerable is hard and it often feels like we are standing on the that high dive platform not sure if we should jump or back away from the edge of the platform. The only way to know for sure if the risk is worth it is to be vulnerable and take that step towards the end of the platform and go for it. I recently heard about a study that was done of  one hundred people over the age of ninety. The survey asked asked about what they would have done differently in life. They shared that they would have risked more, reflected more, and done more that would live on after they were gone.

Leading in ways where we are taking risks and striving to leave a lasting legacy is not easy. However, I believe leading and living this way is the most rewarding and it takes the that power of love to carry us through the challenging times.