The Unexpected Leader

INTRODUCTION

Surprise!

Think about the last time that you were legitimately surprised, in a good way. Reflect on where you were, who you were with, and—most important—how it made you feel.

Those eight little letters, s-u-r-p-r-i-s-e, have the ability to delight, amaze, astonish, and positively shock you.

If I reflect on my own good surprise from the past, my mind immediately wanders back to a surprise birthday party that was thrown for me, which was actually a double surprise because my husband proposed to me that evening as well. It was surely a magical night that will never be forgotten.

Now, as someone who spent a significant number of years as a wedding and event producer, I know that surprises can be both awesome and slightly cringeworthy. Because I am a detail-oriented kind of person, I get deeply immersed in the particulars, and when I don't know what's going on, it sends me into a wormhole of “what-ifs.”

And while, over the years, I have escaped some of that “always need to know” and be involved in all of the details, the truth is that many surprises have the potential of being less of a surprise and creep more into the realm of the unexpected.

The Unexpected

Although the words “surprise” and “unexpected” live in the same realm, they have some differences.

The unexpected can surface discomfort, confusion, and frustration—and understandably so. Dealing with the unexpected can send you in a tailspin of emotion that can be, well, unexpected.

The following phrases probably ...