Can You Stand by your Decisions in the Face of Controversy?

By Mike Myatt, Chief Strategy Officer, N2growth

This will be a short, but personal blog post Standing behind decisions that everyone supports doesn’t particularly require a lot of chutzpa. On the other hand, standing behind what one believes is the right decision in the face of tremendous controversy is the stuff great leaders are made of. 

We have all witnessed the damage that can occur to good people attempting to do the right things when they have been harmed by false statements, propaganda and/or the rumor mill. A good friend and mentor of mine is currently experiencing this nightmare. My friend is a person of great moral character and integrity who recently made the decision to reengineer his business in order to better align the enterprise with his personal beliefs and goals.

Transitions always have casualties and are rarely easy which is why most people are adverse to change. While I don’t personally agree with all the decisions my friend has made (or at least how the decisions were arrived at), I recognize that it took a tremendous amount of personal conviction to rebrand a very successful company based upon what he felt was the right thing to do and I admire him for it. Those of us that know the ins-and-outs of this story may perhaps question some of the decisions this entrepreneur has made, but the people who truly know this individual support him and wish him the best in his transition.

That being said I have a very bad taste in my mouth for the people who were willing to reap the rewards of his decisions when they directly benefited from them, but who are now taking this opportunity to snipe, kibitz from the cheap seats, and besmirch the character of a truly great individual. It is after all his business and while nobody knows how this move will play out it doesn’t give them the right to call into question decades of great decisions and good acts that have benefited many (myself included).

Each day brings with it a new set of challenges and the best any of us can hope for is that we will have the courage and character to stand behind our personal beliefs and convictions regardless of public opinion or outcome. I wish you well my friend.