[April 13, 2017] Those who study leadership find common ground when learning about great leaders of the past; the benefits being clear. So why would we, as a matter of limited time available to us, want to study Amelia Earhart who was a famous pilot in early aviation history?
“Never interrupt someone doing what you said couldn’t be done.” – Amelia Earhart, American aviation pioneer
Just this past Monday evening about 50 military veterans gathered to hear a retired U.S. Air Force colonel give a presentation on Amelia Earhart. Like so many of my fellow vets we all wondered what the fascination was about her and why so many have dedicated their lives to the study of her achievements; those mostly being record setting flights by a woman.
Earhart was famous worldwide and she remains popular to this day. The back story on her friendship with the U.S. President’s wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, tells us of the influence that helped make it so but that also obscures the reason we should be interested in Earhart as she broke new ground in leadership.
Women were treated very differently than men and seen as less than capable, less intelligent, and having less of those traits we associate with leadership. For example, no one thought a woman could be a pioneer in anything, or that she could be just a brave as a man, or that she could gain the experience and foresight to do things with an airplane that men only dreamed about. They were, of course, wrong.
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward.” – Amelia Earhart
Leadership means inspiring others – whether done consciously or not – and that is exactly what she did in the 1930s and still does today. Earhart was about bringing the world to girls and women but also to everyone.1 She grew up at a time when women didn’t do those sorts of things. Reading her books one gets the idea that Amelia Earhart flew for the adventure, the fame, and to be first. She was a winner – and a leader – in all senses of the word.
Now I know why it’s a good idea to study Amelia Earhart.
For those interested in a great group of people who have made a study of her and have undertaken the task to find her, her navigator, and her plane, see their website here: https://tighar.org/
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- She used her fame to promote two causes dear to her: the advancement of commercial aviation and the advancement of women: http://www.history.com/topics/amelia-earhart