Great leadership comes in many forms, Hillier
Posted by John Malloy on 11/25/2009
By MORGAN IAN ADAMS
There are many facets to leadership.
Vision, optimism, communication, action.
And a leader must visibly demonstrate each of those qualities in order to get the best out of employees — or in Rick Hillier’s case, the men and women who put their lives on the line for this country.
The retired Chief of Defense Staff was in Collingwood on Tuesday to talk about ‘Leadership in Tough Times’. Hillier, who retired from the military in July, 2008, now works with TD Canada Trust on leadership development and training activities and recently released A Soldier First,chronicling his time in the top post, as well as his experiences in a 35-year career with the military that also a posting as commander of the multi-national division in Bosnia- Herzegovina in the 1990s.
“I’ve been proud to wear the Canadian flag on my shoulder for 35 years,” he told the crowd at the Royal Canadian Legion as he took them through a 60- minute presentation — complete with photos from his many visits to Afghanistan — that was at times hilarious, and at other times gut-wrenching. Even in his civvies Hillier commanded attention from the full house, often using his self-decrepating humour to draw lessons on leadership.
The event was sponsored by the Collingwood Chamber of Commerce.
“We have the most affluent standard of living in the world, and it’s just a dream for most of the world’s population,” said Hillier. “We have as a mini-mum standard the rule of law, and most country’s and most people don’t have that privilege.
“Sometimes it’s something we take for granted, and we forget we are living in the best country in the world.”
While he acknowledged the men and women in Canadian uniform drew strength from him because of his demonstrated leadership, he in turn drew strength from the families of soldiers– especially families of those who were killed in action.
“As a leader, you face some dark days,” he said. “When the men and women under you are losing their lives… you can’t carry that kind of stress load by yourself.
“I have found inspiration from the families of soldiers who have been lost… I’m inspired by their strength and dignity.” …
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Posted by
John Malloy
on 11/25/2009. Filed under
Collingwood.
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