We can learn key life lessons from Powell

The death of General Colin Powell prompted me to reflect a lot on the life of the man, whose journey we could learn a lot from. Gen Powell died at the age of 84 due to Covid-19 complications, leaving behind a rich legacy and a portfolio of achievements and failures that made for a noteworthy life.

So what could we learn from this four-star general who served in the United States government in different capacities, including as United States National Security Advisor, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the first African-American Secretary of State?

Born in 1937 in Harlem, New York, and raised in the South Bronx, Powell’s parents had immigrated to the US from Jamaica. He was educated in New York City public schools and his parents drilled in him that he had to leverage every opportunity and, most importantly, he must never ever “embarrass the family”.

It was clear from the onset the sacrifices his parents had made to immigrate to the United States must not go to waste. The good start he enjoyed in his early life, the grounding from two strict parents who made it clear that jail or a life of crime was not an option, instilled in him the culture of giving every opportunity his very best. This is the first – and perhaps most important – lesson we learn from Powell’s life, that children always benefit from “the gift of a good start” in life. 

Embrace mistakes

He writes about this in his autobiography, which I have been re-reading with renewed interest. He says that children must be provided with a good start early in life, a foundation and a structure of discipline, clear goals and responsibility that sets them up for a successful life.

Powell might not have been an A-student, in fact, he was a “mediocre C student” by his own admission. But once he discovered that he was really good in the military, he gave it his all, rising fast through the ranks to become the Unites States’ top soldier. There is another lesson in there – good grades are not necessarily the key to a successful life. It is what you do with the opportunities you encounter that really matters.

His balanced approach to life should also be of interest to us. In an interview with the New York Times in 2007, he described himself as such: “Powell is a problem-solver. He was taught as a soldier to solve problems. So he has views, but he’s not an ideologue. He has passion, but he’s not a fanatic. He’s first and foremost a problem-solver.”

Finally, from Powell we could learn to embrace our mistakes, especially from how he handled that painful 76-minutes speech at the United Nations where he pressed for war against Iraq, which later became clear was based on fake intelligence. He acknowledged his mistake publicly and admitted that it will “always be part of my record”, but he also moved on and learned from his mistakes.

The writer is the director, Innovation Centre, at Aga Khan University; [email protected]