April Snows

I love the song “Sometimes It Snows in April” by Prince. 

Listen to the lyrics when you can.  

The unexpected happens. Spring storms. Once-in-a-lifetime eclipses. Even earthquakes. We all need to cultivate emotional agility because the only constant is change. 

As Washington Roebling, engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge, put it, “Nothing lasts forever. The most unforeseen circumstances will swamp you and baffle the wisest calculations. Only vitality and plenty of it helps you.”

I was having coffee with a friend, a global business partner at Ernst & Young. She said to me, “People don’t always get this, but the most important quality our hires need is flexibility. They gotta be able to move with life’s fast and furious changes.”  

In the book “Emotional Agility: Get Unstuck, Embrace Change, and Thrive in Work and Life,” Dr. Susan David concurs. She maintains that intelligence, creativity and stamina are not half as important as the nimbleness to navigate one's ever-changing internal world. That is why I have evolved from a Leadership Coach (external focus) to a Self-Leadership Coach (internal focus). 

Unforeseen circumstances—what we might call “triggers”—baffle all of us. No one is immune: parts of us are simply set off when things go sideways. To respond with compassion and creativity when parts of you flip out: That is emotional agility. Vitality. Self-Leadership.