This week’s Leadership Lesson comes straight from the 80s TV series featuring America’s favorite mustached detective, Magnum P.I.! However, I’m not going to write about Thomas Magnum in this piece. Classic misdirect, right? I’m going to write about the leadership traits exhibited by one of Magnum’s best friends, Theodore Calvin. But if you’re a fan of the show, you know him better as T.C.
T.C. owned a helicopter company called Island Hoppers. He would take tourists on chopper rides around the scenic and majestic islands of Hawaii. Sounds like a calm, peaceful business, doesn’t it? Well it would have been, had Magnum not needed to borrow his one and only chopper almost each and every week. You see, often Magnum’s foot or car pursuits would end with the bad guy hopping into a boat or plane or helicopter that would necessitate Magnum commandeering T.C.’s chopper to keep the chase alive. This would usually happen right when T.C. was getting ready to start a flight with innocent tourists who had just paid for their ride.
T.C. and Magnum would argue back and forth over whether or not Magnum could use the chopper. The debates would get heated. Voices would be raised. Insults would be hurled. But every time, the outcome was the same. T.C. lent Magnum the chopper, oftentimes accompanying him on the chase. And this is the Leadership Lesson I want to focus on today. Leaders do what’s right, even if it means self-sacrifice.
By lending Magnum his chopper, T.C. would almost always lose money from paying customers who had already booked a flight. And it wasn’t uncommon for T.C.’s chopper to take on some gunfire during their pursuits. These repairs wouldn’t just pay for themselves. Not to mention, his business probably started getting a bad reputation for all the last-minute cancelled flights. It’s a good thing YELP didn’t exist back then. So why did T.C. continue to let Magnum have his way? Simply put…it was the right thing to do.
Every time he lent out his chopper he was helping stop a drug smuggler. He was helping put a murderer behind bars. He was helping save a kidnap victim. He was doing the right thing. And each time he did it, he knew it was going to cost him. He knew it would cost him money. He knew it would cost him his reputation. He knew it could cost him his life. But I dare you find an episode in all eight seasons where T.C. put himself before the cause and said no.
The great leaders are selfless. They understand the mission. They understand the cost. And they never let ego stand in the way of success.
Still a great lesson in leadership!