I don’t get to attend as many leadership events as I’d like to, but I always take something away from the ones I do. This year’s Leadercast was no exception. These were the highlights for me.

Stories Connect

We heard some amazing stories at Leadercast. Nearly every speaker talked about a person who had changed his or her life. Andy Stanley told about a successful business owner who went out of his way to mentor him in his formative years. Laura Schroff told about a chance meeting with a homeless boy that changed both of their lives forever. Perhaps the most inspiring was Randall Wallace’s story of his journey to Scotland to find out more about his family, which eventually led him to write the movie Braveheart.

In each instance, the speakers all had great points to make. But their points wouldn’t have had nearly the weight without the stories that accompanied them. It’s easy to make a point. It’s more difficult – and much more powerful – to include a story that drives the point home.

We Can’t Lead if We Can’t Listen

One of the main these from Leadercast was the importance of trust as the basis for effective leadership. Listening is the key to building both individual and corporate trust. SAP CEO Bill McDermott commented on the importance of finding out what is important to any new team before implementing sweeping changes. Henry Cloud shared a brilliant quote: “You understand people when they understand that you understand.” Archbishop Desmond Tutu mentioned that good leaders listen to all voices, even the ones of those who disagree. When it comes to building trust, slow is fast and it starts with listening.

Real Power Comes from Empowering Others

When it comes to legacy, Andy Stanley mentioned that precious little will be remembered about us apart from what we give to others. That’s why it’s important to use the influence we have to empower others. And it’s important to start now, instead of waiting until we feel our influence is significant. Simon Sinek told how individuals who become leaders are the ones who sacrifice for others instead of looking for the easy way out. Sacrificing for others means that corporate budgets, disposable time and sometimes even personal safety take a backseat at times.

Leadership is truly a buzzword with new books, presentations and programs hitting the streets every day. But at the end of the day, much of what there is to say – and hear – about leadership isn’t new. However, it is relevant since the need for quality leaders is as evident today as it’s ever been. Will your leadership outlive you? Only time will tell, but this is a great place to start.

If you attended Leadercast 2014, what did you learn?

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his new ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website  or follow him on Twitter.

As enthralled as I was with the presentations, one poignant leadership lesson stood out which I knew I’d have to eventually share.  It came from a story Richard Melhart relayed to us.  Melhart was an American survivor of the Pan Am Flight 73 hijacking in 1986 in Karachi, Pakistan which resulted in 22 fatalities and over 150 casualties.  It was a horrific ordeal and ended with the passengers fleeing the plane through emergency exits as the four hijackers began an all-out assault following failed negotiations to acquire a new pilot for the grounded aircraft.

According to Melhart, the survivors stayed in the airport until the next morning when they were boarded onto a new flight since the one that had been hijacked was a connection for most of the passengers.  Imagine getting back on a plane that soon after such an experience!  After the passengers were reboarded, a group of mental health professionals entered the aircraft to deliver a message, and that is what I want to share with you because it has such a huge implication for resilience in the face of tragedy.  Here are the four things they shared, with my commentary:

The responsibility for recovery is your own. You have the power to overcome.

When adversity strikes (as it does for all of us), many times we have a tendency to focus on what happened to us instead of what we can do about what happened to us.  The ability to overcome isn’t out there.  It’s in here, where we control our response.  This is where I’m reminded of Viktor Frankl’s immortal words: “between stimulus and response, man has the freedom to choose.”

Get back to normal quickly.

Taking time off can allow emotional trauma to fester.  This is one of the unfortunate realities we see with soldiers returning from tough overseas employments who are expected to immediately use all the leave time they’ve accrued and can’t find a productive way to employ their abundance of free time.  Activity aids the healing process.

Tell your story often and as soon as possible. Then write it down. In this way you will treat yourself.

When we recount and record our experience, we are forced to interpret it in our own words.  We openly acknowledge the damage that was done – perhaps to others, but more importantly, to ourselves.  We cannot change or heal what we do not acknowledge.

Realize there will be a way to use this situation positively at some point in the future.

Once again, this is speaks to the heart of Viktor Frankl’s message in his book Man’s Search For Meaning, which he wrote upon surviving the atrocities of the holocaust in Auschwitz.  Frankl believed that life is not primarily a quest for pleasure or power, but a quest for meaning.  Meaning can be found in many places, including (and sometimes especially) tragedy.  What a waste of an experience that was acquired at a high price if it cannot be employed to benefit others!

In no way do I want to hold myself up as an expert in overcoming tragedy.  My experience is nothing like the experience of anyone involved in the Pan Am flight 73 hijacking (or any other hijacking).  But it is a fact of life that everyone will experience adversity at some level.  As a leader, your ability endure to the end depends on your ability to overcome.  There are many examples of “one and done” leaders who eventually broke under the pressure of adversity.  The resilient ones are the ones who carry on despite the scars.

Nathan Magnuson is a leadership consultant, coach, trainer and thought leader.  Receive his ebook Trusted Leadership Advisor by subscribing to his website or   follow him on Twitter.