Good morning from an excited city! The buzz is in the air about the Olympic Games which open on Friday afternoon here in Vancouver. There are both positive and negative feelings present in the excitement; we are welcoming the world (or at least that part of the world that experiences winter) to our fair city, and we are spending $1 billion for security. Imagine what the world would be like if we were to invest an additional $1 billion every two years on food, shelter, the education of girls and young women, healthcare, and on the ability of all people everywhere to appear in public without shame. Perhaps we'd not have to have as much security for events like the Games.

Thinking about the Games from a leadership perspective, I was reflecting this weekend, after reading an interview in the Globe and Mail (a large Canadian newspaper for those of you in other parts of the planet), with American sports television producer Dick Ebersol, who has produced eight Olympic Games for American television. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/nbc-boss-bullish-on-big-audiences-great-stories---and-canada/article1458522/  Ebersol speaks in the interview about leadership stability; "I'm just saying that in all my experience, I've never been able to work with the same three [people] leading the project from start to finish. ...I just cannot tell you what a difference that makes. Just from a stability standpoint and knowing what and who you're dealing with  and what to expect, it makes a huge difference."

In my own practice as a coach and teacher, I have often spoken about how important it is for leaders to know when it's time to leave -- "when you're horse is dead, get off it!" But Ebersol is right, stability in an organization is important, especially when large scale projects are at hand. Common vision, common praxis, common language (organizational vernacular), and the vitality of sustained relationships all contribute and are immeasurable benefits for such projects. The people who work with and for you, are more likely to stay the course on a large project, if you are committed to staying on board as well. That means, quite frankly that part of your journey as a leader is to stay on a particular journey with a particular group of people, even if there is a better offer from somewhere else. You have a responsibility to the people you lead to lead them.  Of course, if you are no longer committed to the project, or if your 'horse is dead', get off, but always include in your decision calculation, what would be the impact of sustained, common leadership at this time, and is there a better time for me to leave, than right now?

Speaking of the Olympics, please keep the Olympic and Para-Olympic atheletes in your thoughts and prayers over the next month or so. These young women and men have worked very hard to get to these games, and they will experience many life changing moments. This is their time, may they experience life in all of it's abundance. And may these Games be filled with peace and enjoyment for all.