Fathers Day, The Hardy Boys and a First Leadership Lesson

I have made many mistakes.

Some of them were pretty spectacular.  While formal training, my master’s degree, and supplementary reading have taught me the theory of leadership, my mistakes have taught me more than I care to admit.

My first leadership lesson occurred when I was not much more than six or seven years old.  I was a voracious reader, devouring comics, magazines, and books about superheroes, as well as war stories.  The best of all time are the Hardy Boys books.  I wanted to read every single Hardy Boys story.

One day, I went into the drugstore in our little farming village and saw a Hardy Boys book I didn’t have. I didn’t have the money for it. So I slipped it under my shirt and walked out.  On the surface, it was a small act—but whichever way you slice it, it was stealing.

I got home and, of course, got busted.  A shiny new hardcover book couldn’t just show up in our house without everyone knowing about it. I was marched back to the drugstore to turn myself in to the store owner.  My dad waited outside the store while I went in.  I managed to get to the rack of books, slipped the stolen book back where it belonged, and left. Dad asked if I had talked to the owner.  With my backside on my mind, I told him the truth.

I was turned around on the spot and, once again, marched back into the store to “face the music.” I admitted my crime and apologized.  To my shock, the store owner only admonished me gently. More importantly, he thanked me for accepting my crime, returning the book, apologizing, and being “an adult.”

The trip back home was my equivalent of walking the green mile.  I was sure I was heading to the gallows, but it was over—my dad left it at that.  Looking back now, I cannot recall ever hearing about the incident again.

The lesson I took away from the ordeal was this: when something is over and dealt with, it’s over.