Life lessons from Captain Picard
What can we learn about mental health and leadership from Star Trek? There’s actually a lot to explore. I think Captain Picard is the perfect place to start as another helpful addition to this series.
Where do you go after Captain Kirk? William Shatner’s colourful, swashbuckling hero lead from the front and was all-action. Star Trek: The Next Generation was different though. Patrick Stewart’s Jean-Luc Picard was cerebral, steady and serious.
Picard talked himself out of trouble and showed us a new way of doing things. When you watched the show, it was clear who was in charge. Throughout seven seasons on TV, four movies and the recent Star Trek: Picard, we really got to know him.
We saw Picard evolve from a rather stuffy and detached individual to a respected father figure to his crew. We understood his journey, from a young and reckless cadet to the man who stepped up and took charge when he needed to.
We also saw how some of the extreme challenges changed him. More importantly though, we saw things that could help us take the lead ourselves.
Here are three easy things we can learn from Captain Picard:
Listen to people
When the crew of the Enterprise encountered a problem, you could be sure of what Picard would do next. He would assemble his team around the conference table and ask for their suggestions.
He wanted to hear other people’s opinions before he made a decision, and it was clear that he weighed everything up carefully.
He involved his senior officers and it made a difference. It always seemed to enhance their mutual respect as well. In short, his team clearly felt valued and they had confidence in his decision making. Isn’t this what a leader should be?
I think the most important thing here is that he was always reasoned and objective. No dismissals, no judgements and no anger.
You don’t have to be a manager to take something from this. Just try to catch yourself next time you’re in a group discussion and remember this. There’s so much we can learn from these scenes.
While he may have lacked warmth and never strived for personal connections in these situations, he got what he needed. I think there was also a lack of ego, which really made a difference.
When we think about the workplace, this example shows us the immense value of developing a professional and capable team around you. He received the perspectives he needed to make the best decisions.
In life, the recent Picard series has shown us that all of these people became loyal friends. They were there for him when he needed them.
The final thing I think we can take from this example is that he would never be influenced or overpowered in these situations. He made the final decision, and no one’s opinion was more important than the right outcome.
When the opportunity presents itself, just try to sit back and listen before you reach a conclusion.
Don’t let emotions take over
I think it’s safe to say that we saw the worst of Picard when he let his emotions take over. This was almost always related to his encounters with the Borg, and it was always out of character.
In case you need a reminder, at the end of the third series of STTNG, Picard was abducted by his most dangerous enemy, the Borg. He was surgically altered with cybernetic implants and converted into ‘Locutus of Borg’. During this time, he was stripped of free will and his tactical knowledge was used to wipe out a fleet of starships defending the Federation from the Borg attack.
Although he was rescued and restored, he would never be the same again.
After his experience with the Borg, we would see shocking confrontations with people close to him. His fight with his brother, Robert was just the first soon after in the episode Family. We would also see an intense confrontation with Worf in the movie First Contact. This would lead to the ‘Captain Ahab” moment in the same film, and this clearly wasn’t his finest hour.
Worst still, his reactions to the Borg also see him appear to be willing to sacrifice his own crew members. This is about as far as you can get from the reasoned, wise and diplomatic leader we usually see.
When Picard loses control like this, he jeopardises important relationships, makes bad decisions and puts people in danger.
More significantly, people lose faith in him. At the start of First Contact, Starfleet made great efforts to station him away from the action when the Borg appear. This isn’t where their best Captain and crew should be when there’s an emergency.
For the purposes of this post, I’d like to respectfully sidestep potential clinical mental health issues, such as PTSD, and focus on those times when we are just stressed and overwhelmed.
We need to be mindful of what’s happening. We need to reach out for help and do something when we realise our judgment and our performance might be compromised.
You don’t have to feel bad. It happens. Just be aware and don’t expect to be superhuman. Do what you can to get on top of it.
In the case of Picard, we can see how bad things get when he loses control and what a huge contrast it is when we look at the things that make him so inspiring.
When emotion takes over, we’re unlikely to be the best versions of ourselves.
Let people in
I’m afraid I’m going to have to reference another negative here. Despite all the great things this character represents, I think this is the lesson we really need to learn.
From the first episode, he makes it clear he’s ‘not a family man’.
Despite his other qualities, Picard is aways distant, aloof and a little irritable, especially when a young Wesley Crusher is around in the early days. The significant thing about this for me though is that this clearly comes at a cost.
In the last scene of the series, he joins his crew in their regular poker game and simply says, ‘I should have done this years ago’. This says so much about Picard.
He always put his career first, and we often see that he has regrets. His romance with the fortune hunter Vash gives us some great insights into this. Intensely private, he hides the relationship from his crew. Even worse, he fails to consider her feelings and acts as if he is embarrassed by this side of his life.
I think this is a great example of how a leader can become consumed by their responsibilities and desire to set the right example.
It’s easy to become someone else and conceal things that point to the ‘real you’. Like Picard, we can also push people away and make the wrong impression.
Perhaps the biggest regret is explored in the Generations movie. When he enters the Nexus after the tragic loss of his family, we are given a glimpse of what Picard really longs for. This mysterious band of energy literally transports people out of time and allows them to live out their deepest desires.
When Picard arrives in the Nexus, we see visions of a family around him that makes a stark contrast from being ‘the last Picard’ referenced earlier in the movie.
When we join him in Picard, he has turned his back on people. He’s also reluctant to accept help from his old crew. It’s clear that there are people who deeply care about him though, and are ready to do whatever it takes to help him.
The most significant thing for me in all of this is that Picard appears to be in a better place when he does let people in. From joining the poker game to exploring romantic interests, he’s clearly a better person, and still maintains authority.
I think the lesson here is that Picard himself has put up the barriers, yet he keeps showing us the importance of letting people in.
I hope you found this helpful. Hopefully, this will prompt you to think about what’s important to you and whether you really need to hide who you are from people. You should also reflect on the risks of losing control and not noticing when things are starting to go wrong. It will be interesting to see how people respond when you ask them their opinion as well.