The Sentence

Last weekend, I reread I column from the Wall Street Journal that I saved. Peggy Noonan wrote it in 2010. Normally, I’m not a fan of Ms. Noonan’s columns, but she struck a chord with this one. In it, she told the story of a conversation Clare Boothe Luce had with John F. Kennedy in 1962. She told him, “A great man is one sentence.” She meant that the impact of some leaders can be summed up in just one sentence. Here are three examples; so momentous were the accomplishments of these three men, you’ll know whom I’m referring to in each sentence even though I don’t mention their names:

“He preserved the Union.”

“He lifted us out of a great depression.”

“He won the cold war.”

Noonan wrote this column to rhetorically ask what President Obama’s sentence would be. I’ve been musing about this all week, wondering what my sentence could be. I may not play on a world stage, but l can, as my favorite leadership guru Lee Thayer says, “Cause something that didn’t exist in the past and doesn’t exist in the present.” It’s a motivating, intoxicating thought.

So, here are a few questions for you and me to ponder courtesy of Ms. Noonan, Ms. Boothe Luce and Dr. Thayer:

• What is the one sentence you want to define you?
• Why does it motivate you?
• How will your world be different if you succeed?

As you consider these questions, I hope you find the process as motivating and challenging as I did.