Cocktails with Carl
Written by Carl Monty, Director and Partner at June Co.
Remembering 9/11 and Lessons in Maintaining Unity
This past week marked the 20th anniversary of 9/11. I took some time to reflect on that day, remembering exactly where I was when I first heard the news. I was making my daily commute to work listening to a popular morning radio show when it was announced that a “small plane” had run into one of the towers of the World Trade Center in New York. When I arrived at the office, our small team was already huddled around a television watching as the events unfolded before our eyes. We sat there speechless.
As it became apparent how sophisticated this terrorist operation was, everyone started scrambling to connect with loved ones. Commercial passenger planes had been hijacked and turned into bombs and there were still hundreds of planes in the air. With no knowledge of their intended targets, it was time to revert to the safety of home, hunker down and continue to watch the news unfold. Then the towers came down, The Pentagon got hit and another plane headed for Washington DC crashed in Pennsylvania. With eyes glued to the television, hours turned into days. Time passed with no real consequences.
The worst part of it all was the personal stories of those most affected. I’ll never forget a news story that was replaying voicemail messages from those trapped inside the World Trade Center. They had resigned to their fate and were calling their homes to say goodbye to their families. The heartwrenching messages moved me to tears.
The pain created that day has lasted a long time. Nearly 3,000 people died from the attacks of 9/11 and many others were critically injured or sickened. For the first time in my life, I felt that America was vulnerable and severely weakened. I was worried about the future. My wife was about to give birth to our first child and we wondered if life for her would be normal.
It’s interesting reliving the specifics of those few days. Everyone was so afraid and uncertain. But in true fashion, we rallied together as Americans and became more unified than ever. We had each other's backs regardless of race, religion, status, or political leanings. For a brief period, we were actually living out the values on which the country was founded.
I then turned my attention to what has happened since. If you happened to watch any of the 20th-anniversary memorial services, you probably heard a phrase repeated over and over again and it probably sounded something like this, “We were never more unified as a country than right after 9/11”, or, “I wish we could be unified again like we were after 9/11”.
That got me thinking, how did we get from that moment in time to where we are today? Why did our unity slowly dissipate over that 20 years to its current position of non-existence? We are now so divided we can’t even get on the same page with one another when it comes to figuring out the best way to fight a pandemic let alone a laundry list of other problems. It’s pretty embarrassing for a country that is supposed to set the best example for the rest of the world...
So, out of curiosity, I posed two questions to our team this week at our regular monthly meeting.
How/why did we lose that sense of unity after 9/11?
What values/philosophies can teams use to avoid becoming divided and instead remain unified, even in the most difficult situations?
Since we have been spending a lot of time talking about and working on building the perfect team, I was eager to hear their feedback.
In response to question #1, here is what I heard used to describe why we lost our unity:
Political power grab
Selfishness/Ego
Loss of focus
Lack of accountability
Breakdown of trust
Money/status
Abandonment of values
Tribalism/Identity politics
Fear-based influence
All true and I can’t think of better words to describe the current state of our dysfunction.
In response to question #2, here is what I heard to describe how we can stay unified:
Relationships over transactions
Continue to work on building trust
Adherence/discipline to a published value system
Accountability
Team before self
Grace/Forgiveness
Understanding/patience
Gratitude/perspective
Again, all great answers, and I wish we could teach a master class on each one to all of our political leaders. It would certainly go a long way to getting our country unified again like it was post 9/11.
One last thought to share and that I also reflected on this week…..As someone who visited New York multiple times per year for business, I had the privilege to personally witness the miraculous transformation of “ground zero” into the sacred place that it has become today. Each time I visited I would make a point to walk down to Lowertown to see the progress as it turned from a mountain of rubble and debris into beautiful gardens, incredible fountains, and majestic buildings. If you have not yet visited The 9/11 Memorial and Museum along with The Freedom Tower, these are a must-see the next time you are in New York. They do a masterful job of capturing the tragedy that took place and it’s an opportunity to reflect and remember those that lost their lives along with honoring all those that responded to help save lives. And, most importantly, it’s a perfect example of what we can accomplish when we stay unified and focused on a common goal. It can be done!
Cinnamon Maple Whiskey Sour
As the days turn cooler, this is a great fall drink to keep you warm inside.
Ingredients:
1.5 ozs Bourbon Whiskey
1 oz Fresh Lemon Juice
3 Teaspoons Maple Syrup
1 Pinch of Ground Cinnamon
Cinnamon Stick Garnish
Fill a cocktail shaker with some ice and all ingredients. Shake well and pour into a cocktail glass filled with 1 large ice cube. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.