Forgiveness
“Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate.”
-Thomas Jones, in the Wall Street Journal, 1975
I recently wrote about the carefulness of well-seasoned leaders. Lately, I’ve been thinking about the principle of forgiveness and the Thomas Jones quote above came to mind.
In order for startups to work, there needs to be an underlying fabric of kindness and forgiveness. Any substantive relationships will someday have tough moments, for example between co-founders, investors, partners, or customers. In those moments, it is kindness and forgiveness which make room for resolution.
In startups, markets, and cities, the circles are often much smaller than they appear. Reputations matter.
One of my favorite motivational stories on the topic of forgiveness is the story of a 20-pound frozen turkey slung by a teenager in a moment of stupidity through the windshield of an oncoming car. It is the story of how the victim did everything in her power to salvage the life of the young teenager, despite the pain and suffering and despite the allure of potential legal rewards and more stringent “justice.”
These principles are perhaps some of the hardest to practice in business. They are motivational and I like hearing stories of those that have been big in these ways.
What are your thoughts on forgiveness? Do you have motivational stories to share?