Sunrise, Sunset

Recently, before conducting a leadership training seminar in Mumbai, I watched the sun come up.  I had just checked into my hotel and I had a large window so I watched the sun first appear and then rise until it was a full circle over the horizon. I always find it interesting that my wife, Karen, can be watching the sun set in Texas as I watch it rise in Mumbai. The sun’s not really setting or rising, of course. We are rotating. That’s an accepted scientific fact now.

It wasn’t accepted in Galileo’s time and his defense of the idea that the sun was the center of the universe brought intense criticism from clerics and philosophers. This ultimately resulted in Galileo being tried, found guilty of heresy and spending the rest of his life under house arrest.

Does it make you wonder what we believe now that will be proven false in the future? Is there a leadership lesson here? How do we respond when confronted with a belief diametrically opposed to one we hold? Will we treat that person the way Galileo was treated? Or will we sincerely say these powerful words: “You may be right.”  Of all of the leadership skills a manager needs to develop, the ability to show respect for a contrary opinion may be near the top of the list.