I usually don’t watch much of the Super Bowl post game show, but last night, I was curious as to what Peyton might say, so I stuck around and watch for a while. When Cam Newton took to the podium, my interest was peaked. I admit, I struggle with Cam. He’s an incredible football player, but there has something about his demeanor that comes off as incredulous and super arrogant. He’s good, not doubt about it, but I as a student of leadership it seems something was missing. I saw Cam melt away last night as the game slipped through his fingers and I told my youngest to notice how Cam gets too high when things are good and it getting too low and frustrated when it’s bad.
And that’s what happened last night. It’s a pretty good case study in immaturity as a leader and is well documented in the transcript here and in this well written New York Times piece.
It made me sad to watch and has really stayed with me all night. It’s not an ability thing and it’s certainly not a race thing. It’s an issue of maturity. And one I thought was really emphasized by this two tweets ironically posted to my timeline last night just seconds apart.
One shows the visibly upset Cam, the other says ‘the more self-control you the more people trust you’.
This is why I believe, we like our leaders to be stable in the good times and the bad times. That doesn’t mean they don’t show emotion. It doesn’t mean they don’t get excited, or get hurt. But they control it and they manage it.
I would love to be a Cam fan. I hope one day if Cam is in this position again there’s a different outcome. I would love to see.
In the meantime, as we leave the football field and head to our jobs and the rest of our lives, lets us be reminded of these teachings and learn and work towards this. And let’s show grace when we fall short.
Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. ..6Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled. 7Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, dignity, 8and sound speech that cannot be condemned, so that an opponent may be put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us. Titus 2:2, 6-8
I really like this Chrome plug-in that I spied on a co-worker’s computer last week called 