48 WESTERN PALLET
Pressure Testing
Picture this: It’s about 8:30 in the morning and someone starts pounding on my door, waking me up. I bolt out of bed and open the door.
Standing there is Adam Kelsey, a friend of mine from the school chess club.
It was my freshman year in college, and I was the VP of the club.
“What’s up?” I said, rubbing my eyes.
He looked at me somberly and said, “John bailed on club.”
“What? Why?” I stammered.
John was the president of the club and had been running it for a couple of years. He handled everything, school charter stuff, setting up matches, logistics, coaching—all of it.
“No one knows. He just told some of the guys that he was done,” Adam replied.
I was reeling, trying to make sense of it all.
Okay, Kev. Stop spiraling. It’s decision time.
“Bro, I don’t know how to run the club,” I said humbly. “I mean, I’ve seen John do some of it, but I have no connections, no plan, no knowledge…”
Adam was a couple of years older than me and the best player in the club. He was also a good friend.
He gave me a look of honest care and said, “You don’t have a choice. You signed up. We’re counting on you.”
I was terrified.
There was a knot the size of a softball in my gut. I wanted to run.
“Look, dude,” he continued. “Just because you’re the leader doesn’t mean that you have to walk this out alone. I’ll help you, but you’ll need to make some important de- cisions quickly. We can’t have a leadership vacuum here. Then you’ll need to keep showing up, building relationships with the school staff and the other guys, making sure that the club stays intact and that guys don’t feel abandoned. Logistics is the easy part.”
I learned a lot about courageous leadership that day. And together, we were able to build processes that paved the way for a healthy club culture and long-term success.