As is the case so often, we learn much more about someone after their passing than when they were alive. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an icon.  Her nickname, The Notorious RBG, showed that there can in fact be an intersection of pop culture and the Supreme Court.  Our team spent time this week reflecting on the life of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the impact she had on our country.  We talked about the characteristics that made her a great leader and what it was about her that inspired each of us. 

She had tremendous resilience.  Many times she faced adversity in her life and when she did, she responded.  Among the challenges she faced, she helped her husband get through law school while he was batting cancer, she lost her mother the day before her high school graduation, she faced her own battles with cancer and when she was one of the seven women in her Harvard Law class of 500, she was questioned why she was “deserving of taking a man’s place”.   Once when asked about overcoming many of the things in her life, she responded; “I wasn’t going to just sit in the corner and cry.”  I love the audacity to take matters into her own hands and refuse to be a victim of her circumstances.

RBG had a undying pursuit of what she believed was right, even when it went against popular opinion.  Great leaders aren’t afraid to challenge norms and make their case for how things can be better.  Often she took the lead on writing the dissenting opinion on Supreme Court decisions. She will be remembered for her burning desire to fight for equality for all and what she was able to accomplish specifically when it came to women’s rights.  Personally being part of a team with many fierce and powerful women in leadership positions, it’s hard to imagine that it wasn’t long ago they wouldn’t have had the same opportunities they have today.  RBG was comfortable creating discomfort.  While “going with the flow” can create harmony, it doesn’t change the world.

It was also recognized among our team that despite her willingness to state her opinion and ruffle feathers, she didn’t let that deter her from seeing people as people.  Her well documented friendship with fellow Justice, Antonin Scalia showed her ability to separate the person from politics.  Although they disagreed on many issues, they didn’t let that keep them from enjoying dinners together, going to the opera, and being photographed together atop an elephant in India.  She talked about how his dissenting opinions, made her writing stronger.  As leaders, we are far more powerful when we are open to understanding than when we are closed off to beliefs we don’t share.

RBG recognized those who had paved a path as she paved a path for many others.  She leaves an incredible legacy, one that will be well documented in history.  Most of us aren’t on a path to becoming a Supreme Court Justice, but we are all on a path somewhere.  As we navigate the road of life, let’s remember how Ruth Bader Ginsburg paved some of that path for us and decide which path we want to pave for someone else.

*Each week I share a leadership message with our team and we are honored to share it with you via MIBE Tribe.  MIBE (the acronym for Make It Better Everyday) Tribe delivers education on heart leadership and intentional culture building for the hospitality industry.