Discipline : Why the Hard Path is Easier
By Chief Keith A . Germain , ( Ret .)
There are many challenges that come with leadership positions , but one of the more difficult can be the responsibility to discipline employees .
This is especially true in smaller organizations where managers and leaders may have been former peers and have well-developed relationships .
Disciplining is hard , but harder still in more intimate environments . No one likes to be the bad guy , and the predictable perceived negative feedback and feelings from the disciplined employee can sometimes make leaders hesitate to take the appropriate action .
Despite reading a Kindle full of leadership books and having the benefit of an excellent network of leaders from which to learn , I often struggled with handling that part of my responsibility — that is until I came across excellent advice in a very unlikely spot .
While researching the history of the agency I was about to take charge of in late 2017 , I came across a book ( The Spirit of the Half Moon by E . T . van Breen ) about a replica of the Half Moon , the ship on which Henry Hudson sailed when the Dutch identified and settled the area that would eventually become my home .
In the chapter of that book that focused on the tedious and sometimes overwhelming work required to maintain a wooden ship , I found the phrase that would both guide me and give me a level of comfort when confronted with difficult disciplinary decisions .
The man charged with keeping the ship in sailing shape had found an area of wood rot . It appeared small and could be easily fixed if only the visible spot was damaged , but he knew that sometimes the rot could spread deeper into the structure where it could cause severe damage to critical parts of the hull .
The problem was that the work required just to access and evaluate the area behind the visible spot would be significant , and would be even more daunting if a repair was required .
The shipbuilder was faced with a choice : Complete the quick fix and move on to his laundry list of other maintenance tasks , or undertake the difficult job of tearing into the ship to ensure there was no hidden rot lurking deeper inside .
The man cited an old Dutch proverb when explaining why he so easily decided to undertake the more difficult assessment and fix :
“ Zachte heelmeesters maken sinkende wonden ," which translates to : “ Soft healmasters make stinking wounds .”
The New Jersey Police Chief Magazine | March 2024
It turns out this proverb originated not in shipbuilding , but in medicine . According to Van Dale ’ s Large Dictionary of Expressions ( 2006 ), it referenced poorly trained doctors who chose courses of treatment less painful and invasive than what was really needed . The result was often that while the patient was initially happier ( there was less pain from the easier treatment ), the wound or injury would ultimately remain and become infected — festering , stinking , and eventually causing much worse injury and sickness .
Ineffectively treated and left to worsen , the wound would later require much more drastic intervention than if the problem was properly treated in the first place .
To the contrary , the doctor who treated the issue properly would initially “ hurt ” the patient more . In the short term , the patient surely wouldn ' t like the doctor as much . The patient ’ s friends or family , if hearing the patient endure the treatment , would probably not be thrilled with the doctor either .
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