I woke up thinking about space flight.
It’s about 1 AM, and rather than sleeping, I am thinking about the Apollo 13 mission. Originally intended to fly to and land on the Moon, it never made it. It’s ancient history at this point—it happened in the last century. Why wake up thinking about it when it’s already over and done with and everyone made it back safely and got to be characters in a Ron Howard film?
Because, my friends, it’s a metaphor, and we are all on that rocket.
Can you imagine if Houston’s response to being told there’s a problem was to say, “Carry on, or we’ll never make it to the Moon”?
Leadership is not just about vision—it’s about responding to conditions as they occur. It’s about seeking feedback from the people who are living the experience of the decisions that are being made; ultimately, those are the people who can tell you whether or not the theoretical calculations and planning can be safely carried out in the real world. They are the ones who will live or die. It is irresponsible, reckless, and otherwise stupid not to seek out input from those on board and to adjust accordingly. Houston’s job is to assist, not to insist. Houston’s job is to listen.
There is a tendency these days, if listening does actually occur, to stick to the input of the engineers and theoreticians only rather than to listen to the astronauts flying the damned thing. God forbid, sometimes we only listen to the “gut” of some guy who insists he has expertise on all of it, despite never having flown or studied spacecraft. It’s easier. It’s autopilot. It’s nice and neat and everyone at Mission Control gets out in time to make it home for supper.
It’s also a recipe for disaster.
Houston, when we have a problem, we here on board need creativity, your ability to think critically, and an understanding of what tools are available to us—it is easier to be clearheaded when you’re not in immediate danger. What we don’t need is distance, detachment, and insistence on an unattainable goal at the cost of human lives.
I’d like for all of us to make it home in one piece.