#Rivals February 12

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As an elementary school student in the early 1960’s I loved February 12th because it was celebrated as a school holiday, President Lincoln’s Birthday.

In 1968 the federal government created President’s Day and the stand alone celebration of President Lincoln went away at my school. Each year while attending St. Margaret’s Parochial in Morristown NJ I had Feb 12th off. At the time I never understood all the reasons why, including the nuances of Lincoln’s leadership.

St. Margaret Parochial School-Morristown NJ

February also brings to a close the end of many colleges basketball seasons. The regular season basketball schedule often ends against a RIVAL.

Rivals

Simply put RIVALS are competing for the same objective or goal. They have the same pursuit. I believe the default setting for most leaders is to approach their RIVALS with a “win-lose” mentality. I win and they lose. Abraham Lincoln did not subscribe to that leadership principle.

Doris Kearns Goodwin in her book titled Team of RIVALS explores the leadership brilliance of Abraham Lincoln. The author focuses on his key presidential strategy—appointing rivals and competitors to positions of power in his Cabinet. Many of his advisors thought he was crazy for thinking he could have a “Win-Win” mentality.

Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin

The book is 945 pages long, so there is a lot to absorb. The biggest leadership lesson is to view who President Lincoln surrounded himself with in 1861. The three men all ran against him in the 1860 election: Edward Bates, William H. Seward, and Salmon P. Chase.

Edward Bates became his Attorney General, Seward his Secretary of State, and Salmon Chase his Secretary of Treasury. To the surprise of virtually everyone, Lincoln specifically appoints his old RIVALS to prominent Cabinet positions. He also appointed Edwin Stanton to the position of Secretary of War. Edward Stanton early in Lincoln’s law career called him a “long armed ape” and humiliated him in front of his legal peers.

In an interview during the Tim Ferris Podcast. Here is what Doris Kearns Goodwin had to say about Lincoln.

He refused to let himself get jealous of people. It wasn’t that he didn’t have the normal human emotions of jealousy or envy or anger. But he said, “If you allow those to fester, they’ll poison you.”

Lincoln had a leadership mastery that enabled him to turn RIVALS into a team. He eliminated the emotions of jealousy, anger, and hate in forming a group of difference makers.

So today I celebrate his birthday as a leadership holiday. His life can teach us a lot.

Coach4aday

My purpose in life is to coach. I am a former collegiate basketball coach, director of athletics, and chief of staff. I worked at four NCAA Division I & II universities during my career. At each campus I learned timeless lessons on teamwork and leadership. Today my passion is coaching others on what it takes to lead, serve, and succeed.

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