“It’s not what happens to you, it’s how you react to it that matters,” said Epictetus, one of Rome’s greatest philosophers some 2,000 years ago.

In the same way, Admiral James B. Stockdale—a student of ancient philosophers, including Epictetus—lived the wisdom as well. It is reported that Stockdale mused to himself as he parachuted from his mortally wounded plane [over Vietnam in 1965], “I’m leaving the world of technology and entering the world of Epictetus.”

Admiral Stockdale was a prisoner of war for more than seven years, lived in a 3-foot-wide solitary confinement cell for four years, and was tortured more than 19 times, amongst other things. Yet he survived the horrific event by maintaining an uncommon perspective that has become known as the Stockdale Paradox. 

The paradox, which consists of simultaneously maintaining two seemingly contradictory ideas was leveraged by Stockdale to great advantage for the sake of himself and his men during their dire ordeal. 

On the one hand, Stockdale stated, “I never doubted not only that I would get out, but also that I would prevail in the end and turn the experience into the defining event of my life, which, in retrospect, I would not trade.” In other words, Stockdale held the faith that he would not only survive, but would eventually thrive, despite obstacles and hardships.

On the other hand, Stockdale also talked about the necessity of “the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.” 

According to Jim Collins, author of “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t,” and others who interviewed Stockdale years after imprisonment, the Admiral insisted that those who didn’t make it out of those tragic, horrific prisoner-of-war camps were the optimists. More than holding a generally positive view, the optimists Stockdale referred to were the “blind” optimists—those who hoped that rescue was right around the corner, ignoring the harsh current realities of their circumstances. Such wishful thinking, according to Stockdale, not only did not serve survival, it actually short-circuited it.

Stockdale asserted that, “you must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end—which you can never afford to lose—with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.

Stockdale talked about how the optimists suggested their stay at the Hanoi Hilton would be short-lived and that they would be rescued by Thanksgiving. When Thanksgiving came and went without a rescue they talked about being rescued by Christmas. But Christmas came and went as well. Then it was Easter, but it also came and went. The optimists hoped on the future and did not make the best of their current situation and eventually got so discouraged with disappointment that they lost all hope.

Instead those that not only survived, but emerged from the ordeal mentally stronger, were those that confronted the brutal reality with a positive perspective and made the best of their dire situation.

Jim Collins found evidence of the Stockdale Paradox amongst the executives of the Good-to-Great companies they studied.

So, the question all great leaders need to ask is what perspective am I going to embrace and hold on to during challenging times, let alone a crisis?

Remember, as a leader, others depend on you for their survival, development, and enriching.

Herb Mast is a Leadership Coach and Employee Engagement Specialist. Learn how he can assist you in implementing the principles and concepts presented here.