In looking through part three and four, the story that appealed to me right away was in part four, chapter one: Thomas Carlyle. I have identified two leadership lessons that I took away from the reading. Perseverance is the first lesson, which is shown through Carlyle’s journey that eventually led him to writing. Carlyle did not have an easy life, dealing with “poverty and illness, against uncertainty and despair” (Watson,1951,p.134). He tried to be a minister, then a teacher and then tried several professions without being satisfied with the work. Carlyle eventually found writing and it changed his life. At some point, it would have been easy for him to just give in and make do, like so many people do, but he persevered until he found his true calling.

The second lesson is self awareness, and Carlyle displays this throughout the reading. At the start, he is clearly unfulfilled through his early career choices and knows he is not happy. This changes as soon as finds writing, “In finding the work he loved, he found purpose and direction” (Watson,1951,p. 134). Carlyle’s awareness of his feelings and purpose enabled him to know when he found the right line of work.

Both leadership lessons are relevant to me and my line of work. In nursing, there are so many different specialities, from the operating room (OR), to the maternity ward, critical care and so on, and I tried several of them before I found my true calling. Although not a similar story of perseverance, I did keep looking within my own profession until I found Palliative Care. I was definitely self aware to know that I was meant to be there, almost right away. I have said it in other posts, but I am incredibly honoured to get to be a part of someone’s journey and this gives me a deep satisfaction for what I do on a daily basis. The reading states Carlyle’s lifelong philosophy as “Blessed is he who has found his work” (Watson,1951,p. 135), and I feel very fortunate to have found mine.

Daneen

Reference

Watson, L. E. (1951). Light from Many Lamps.  New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, Inc.