One of my favorite historical figures is Winston Churchill. Prime Minister Churchill was not a very popular member of parliament; however, he found his way into become the Prime Minister of England during a very tumultuous time as Germany was looking to invade England and make it a conquered land. Members of Parliament wanted to talk peace with Adolf Hitler; however, Churchill stood his ground and during those dark days fought to make sure that England would remain free from the grip of Nazi Germany and the Reich.

Churchill became Prime Minister 10 May 1940 a short eight months after the start of World War II. Shortly after the King of England made him Prime Minister, parliament wanted to cast a vote of no confidence as he would not tow the party line, nor bow to Hitler. However, with his bullish attitude and passion for the people of England and England in general, Churchill would not back down from protecting his country and not making peace with Hitler. This by far is one of the greatest aspects of World War II and contained the threat of the Reich from reaching further across the globe. If you have not watched it already, go watch Darkest Hour and it details the tumultuous time that Churchill came to power and how he stood up to his own party to stop Hitler.

On 29 October 1941, a short year after becoming Prime Minister, Churchill went to his alma mater Harrow School. Now this is one of the most misquoted speeches of our time as most believe that Churchill just stood up repeated the phrase Never give up, never, never, never; however, this is not the case. Towards the end of the speech which is magnificent, Churchill says these words:

“Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy. “ (Churchill, 1941)

The next lines after this infamous portion of the speech are just profound as Churchill speaks on how other countries thought England would not survive the threat of Nazi Germany and Adolf Hitler.

We stood all alone a year ago, and to many countries it seemed that our account was closed, we were finished. All this tradition of ours, our songs, our School history, this part of the history of this country, were gone and finished and liquidated.
Very different is the mood today. Britain, other nations thought, had drawn a sponge across her slate. But instead our country stood in the gap. There was no flinching and no thought of giving in; and by what seemed almost a miracle to those outside these Islands, though we ourselves never doubted it, we now find ourselves in a position where I say that we can be sure that we have only to persevere to conquer.” (Churchill, 1941).

Churchill whole life was filled with adversity and he overcame so much from a father who thought Winston would not amount to anything and other mistakes and hurdles; however, despite all of this Churchill in his own words never gave in. There are several great books to read about Churchill here are two of them: Churchill: Walking with Destiny by Andrew Roberts (also made into a movie Churchill: Walking with Destiny) and the three part book series The Last Lion by William Manchester and Paul Reid.

Just like Churchill we all face adversity in life, most likely not on a grand scale as he did; however, we all can learn from his “never surrender” and “never give in” mantra. Life is difficult and leadership is just the same. There are times that the people who “know better” will be giving you bad advice and you just have to go with your gut. There are seasons in life that just are difficult and you are unable able to find a clear path. Persevering is a key to any type of success.

Often times you will have to go at things alone and contrary to popular belief in leadership. This isn’t because you are crazy or don’t know what you are doing; however, it is because you know what is right. The masses, media, career politicians, business professionals, entertainment, and talking heads say that things should be one way and in truth they should be another way. The status quo is not always the best option. Sometimes the best option is to go against the flow and move forward and making a new path. These times get hard and they are often met with resistance, anger, hatred, confusion, challenges, and so many other obstacles. Learn from Churchill and blaze your own trail. If Churchill listened to other countries and his own party the world very well may look extremely different than it does to do. Churchill persevered and forged his path forward even during the darkest of days.

So I ask you! Who is the Churchill of today? Who will go against the grain and create a better tomorrow? Where is the Martin Luther Kings? Who will persevere when all the world is against them? When those want to take you down will you persevere?

Never give in! Never surrender!

Be Bold! Be Fearless! Be Courageous!

Joel

Churchill, W. (1941). Address to Harrow School 29 October 1941. http://www.eng.uwaterloo.ca/~jcslee/poetry/churchill_nevergivein.html

Photo Credit: Yousuf Karish

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