Leadership Matters

CHAPTER 5LEAVE A LASTING IMPRESSION

When we meet someone for the first time we have the opportunity of leaving an indelible impression, and we can decide whether that is a good or a bad impression. Be it in a business or a social setting or greeting the waiter bringing us our evening meal, how we respond, what value we attach to the exchange will determine the impression we create. There is very little difference in energy needed between being memorable and being easily forgotten.

In the immediate aftermath of the tsunami and for the weeks that followed the bodies of the deceased victims were collected and transported to the temple at Wat Yan Yao, two hours' drive north of Phuket airport. Within a month a dedicated facility for the storage and forensic examination of the bodies was constructed at Tha Chat Chai, located halfway between the temple at Wat Yan Yao and the main police operations centre in Phuket. Surrounded by towering palm trees, the facility was constructed on some vacant land overlooking the Andaman Sea, just a couple of hundred metres away. It would have been an idyllic setting were it not for the 115 refrigerated shipping containers and their grim cargo.

For the first several months our hotel was located a couple of kilometres from the site, which meant a short drive home each afternoon. As the urgency of the response eased, and it became clear that the operation would last a good 12 months, it was incumbent upon those of us in leadership positions to manage ...