A Lasting Leadership Lesson: George Washington's Greatest
Leadership Talk
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Summary: The most important victory of the Revolutionary War was
not achieved at Saratoga or Yorktown, but in a log hut in 1783
when George Washington put an end to a rebellion by his troops
by giving a soft-spoken "Leadership Talk".
A Lasting Leadership Lesson: How One Leadership Talk By George
Washington Saved The Revolution (And Our Fledgling Nation) From
Catastrophe. By Brent Filson
Leadership lessons come in many guises. One unforgettable
lesson comes from George Washington and his contribution to the
most important victory of the Revolutionary War.
That victory occurred neither at Saratoga or Yorktown but in a
log hut in 1783 with a few heartfelt words that literally
changed the world. And it's not just a history lesson, it's a
leadership lesson -- for all leaders.
To realize what took place in that hut and its historical
importance, we must understand what a Leadership Talk is and
what was at stake at that moment in 1783 for America?
As to the Leadership Talk: There's a big difference between
speeches/presentations on one hand and Leadership Talks on the
other. Whereas a speech or a presentation communicates
information, Leadership Talks do something more: It establishes
a deep, human, emotional connection with the audience.
The Leadership Talk is a much more effective means of leadership
communication. If Washington hadn't given a Leadership Talk in
the log hut with this assembled officers, who were on the verge
of revolt, the Revolution would have ended right then and there;
and the history of America would have been far different.
As to what was at stake at that moment in history: This occurred
a year and a half after the battle of Yorktown. Popular
misconception has the Revolutionary War ending at that battle.
However, in reality, the War continued to drag on; and as it
did, the Continental Army became increasingly rebellious. Most
of the troops hadn't been paid in at least two years. Their
promised pensions were not forthcoming. Popular sentiment in the
army was gathering to overthrow the Continental Congress and
install a military government.
On the ides of March in 1783, dozens of officers, representing
every company in the army, met in a log hut to vote on taking
this action when George Washington suddenly and unexpectedly
walked in. He gave a speech denouncing the rebellious course
they were on. But it wasn't the speech that carried the day; it
was the Leadership Talk at the end of the speech. Witnesses
report that Washington's speech left many officers unconvinced,
and when he was finished, there was much angry muttering among
them. To bolster his case, the general pulled out a letter he
recently received from a member of the Continental Congress. As
he began reading, his usual confident air gave way to hesitancy.
Then, unexpectedly, he drew out a spectacle case from his
pocket. Few officers had ever seen him put on spectacles.
Usually a severely formal man, he said in a voice softened with
apology: "Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles,
for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service
of my country.
The deep, human, emotional power of that moment can hardly be
described. It electrified the officers. Here was their commander
who had never taken a furlough during his eight years of
command, who had faced storms of musketry fire, who through his
daring and intelligence had kept the Army in tact in what most
of the world thought was a lost cause, here was George
Washington modestly asking his officers to bear with him in an
all-too-human failing. It was an astonishing turning point.
As Maj. Samuel Shaw, who was present, wrote in his journal,
"There was something so natural, so unaffected in this appeal as
rendered it superior to the most studied oratory. It forced its
way to the heart, and you might see sensibility moisten every
eye."
After Washington left the hut, the officers unanimously voted to
"continue to have unshaken confidence in the justice of the
Congress and their country ...." The result was that the
Continental Army disbanded without incident after the War
formally ended a few months later and thereby set in motion the
peaceful events that led to the creation of the Constitution.
Without Washington's intervention, America may very well have
become a kind of banana republic, at the mercy of thousands of
armed and angry soldiers and their officers. And it wasn't his
speech that did it, it was a Leadership Talk.
Washington's Talk is a lesson for all leaders: The best way to
communicate an idea is to bundle it in a human being. If you
can't feel it, you can't lead it, and they won't do it.
2005