The lasting effects when a leader practices the value of duty
I remember a lot of good things from my year in grade six. I was 12 years old. I achieved my best marks in school. Ever. And Mr. Halfpenny, my teacher, wrote a very affirming note in my final report, where he stated: “Robert is very bright and will do great things in life.”
We often underestimate the lasting effects a simple comment can have on someone’s life.
That year I also learned something very important from a complete stranger who picked me up and drove me home in his car.
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to a Life Lesson
At my school, children attended from Kindergarten up through grade six. So that year I was considered a “senior.” I was feeling confident and mature. Maybe a bit too much.
I had gone downtown to visit the public library. I was doing research for one of the many projects assigned by Mr. Halfpenny. On the way home from the library, I was tired and it was a long walk.
So I decided to hitchhike.
Yup. I was a 12-year old, trying to thumb a ride home. I’d seen it on TV. I’d heard of others doing it. So why not me? I was old enough! (or so I thought)
Well, a nice man did stop his car and asked if I wanted a ride. So, I got in. Strangely, I remember having “a weird feeling” about getting into a car with someone I knew nothing about. But I did it anyway, because I felt the need to “follow through”. After all, if you’re standing there holding your thumb out, telling the world you’re hitchhiking, then you better be prepared to do it!
The stranger asked me where I lived and I told him the address. When we got to the nearest cross-street, I said “you can let me off here, if you like.” He responded, “No, I’m taking you all the way to your house.”
He proceeded to tell me the dangers of hitchhiking and getting into a car with people I didn’t know. He warned me that not everyone means to be helpful. Some actually want to be hurtful.
When he pulled into the driveway of my parent’s house, he asked me to promise him that I would NEVER hitchhike again. I promised.
To this day, I have never forgotten that experience.
So, what caused this man to drive me all the way to my house? Why did he feel the need to “instruct” me on matters concerning my safety?
The Value of Duty
This stranger was proving himself as a leader. He clearly felt a sense of duty. Just consider the meaning of duty – moral or legal obligation to do; a social force that binds to a course of action.
This man felt obligated to protect me, and teach me. He didn’t just stop and say: “hey kid, you shouldn’t be hitchhiking.” He picked me up and drove me all the way to my house. He invested the time and energy to talk to me and explain the dangers of hitchhiking.
He also didn’t cross the line and get me into trouble with my parents. He didn’t treat me as a child. He spoke to me as a rational and responsible human being. It is for these reasons that I remember this experience so vividly to this day.
He made a lasting positive impact.
Note, what this stranger did anyone “could” do, providing they practice the value of duty.
Do you know of a leader who practices the value of duty?
Do you have a similar story to share?
Today’s value was selected from the “Harmony-Order” category, based on the e-book Developing Your Differentiating Values.
