Lessons from the Light Brigade

Last week, I ran across an article in a magazine about "The Charge of the Light Brigade."  If you're not familiar with The Charge, there was a famous poem written by Alfred, Lord Tennyson about this battle.  The Charge of the Light Brigade was an infamous battle in the Crimean War in which a British force of just over 600 troops was soundly defeated by the Russians. 

            Now, I'm no history major, so I don’t claim to know everything about this event, and I have no idea was the Crimean War was, but I was able to spend some time reading about the event this week.  Basically, the “Light Brigade” was a group of British mounted solders.  Some of these mounted solders were from the famous “Green Dragoons” group.  If you’ve seen the movie “The Patriot” you’ll know what I’m talking about.  Anyway, this mounted force had a very specific niche in the British Army.  Primarily they were used to sweep in on an enemy infantry and cut them down, usually as the enemy was retreating.  This battle took place in 1854, yet most in the Light Brigade were only equipped with swords and lances.  The point was to be able to cover a lot of ground quickly, and so there was very little need for heavy armor or weaponry.

            While there’s still a lot of uncertainly about exactly what went wrong with this charge, it’s believed that the Light Brigade was given orders to attack a retreating Russian force.  However, what ended up happening was that the Light Brigade charged at the wrong Russian force.  They charged at a highly fortified Russian artillery force that was on some high ground and could see the Brigade coming from about a mile away.  Additionally, the Brigade charged at the Russians through a valley.  The Russians held ground on three of the four sides of the valley; so literally, the Light Brigade was fired on from three sides throughout the attack.  Finally, remember, the Light Brigade had only swords, and maybe a few small arms.  However, the Russian Artillery Unit was equipped with cannons that shot both case shot, and round shot.  Case shot could travel about 300 yards and round shot could travel about 1000 yards.  So, as these solders were riding through the valley to attack, they were being fired upon and they had no defense.  It was said by some historians that the Russians thought the attackers were drunk because their attack was basically a suicide mission.  What’s really fascinating about this story is that despite all the odds stacked against them, the British Light Brigade was actually able to break the Russian lines for a moment before being forced to retreat.  Obviously, the British faced massive casualties as a result of the charge.

            So, what in the world does this have to do with us?  Well, we’ve been studying what makes an effective team.  We usually look at successes while studying this topic; however, sometimes we can learn a lot from the failures of others too!  It’s great to learn from our own mistakes and it’s even better to learn from others! 

            First, please understand that this Light Brigade was a highly effective fighting force.  I think it’s important to understand that even highly effective teams can be rendered ineffective if the right elements aren’t in place.  As you think about our team here, we know we can be highly effective, but we have to make sure everything is in place. 

            Probably the biggest mistake here is that the Light Brigade was unclear about their objective.  While they were ordered to attack a retreating infantry force, they instead attacked a highly fortified Russian Artillery force. We talk a lot about how effective teams have to be doing the “right” work.  Effective teams become in effective when they are unclear about their mission. 

            Second, because of the lack of clarity about the mission, the Light Brigade was woefully unequipped to perform the task they had undertaken.  Remember, the enemy had guns that could shoot them from 1000 yards away, and what did the Light Brigade have?  Swords!  Not really a fair fight, is it?  The thing is, those fast horses and swords were perfectly suited for the task of attacking a retreating infantry unit, but not so well suited for attacking a fortified artillery unit.  So effective teams become ineffective when they don’t have the right tools for the job (or in this case, weapons for the mission).

            Finally, it’s amazing to me that despite all of the mistakes that were made; this force was able to inflict some damage on the enemy.  This shows how effective this team could be, when put in the right situation. 

            We’re getting ready to start the ninth week of school here at Jefferson.  Just like the Light Brigade needed to be aware of the dangers around them, we need to be aware of our situation.  Traditionally, this time of year tends to be stressful.  It always sneaks up on me too!  I think we expect the stress at Christmas or Spring Break, but the week of Parent/Teacher Conferences and Fall Break can really take a lot out of us.  Please make sure you understand that and prepare yourself accordingly.  Take care of yourself! 

            Also, as a team, we need to make sure we’re clear about the mission.  We know our big mission as a corporation, our purpose, to inspire and equip all students to continuously acquire and apply knowledge and skills while purposing their dreams and enriching the lives of others.  Over the last two weeks, we’ve been taking time to set interdependent team goals for the year.  These goals are your mission this year!  How will your team keep this mission in front of you so you don’t end up working toward the wrong things just like the Light Brigade?  What about your students?   How will you share these goals with your students?  What goals will they set from themselves?  Remember, we ALL need to have a purpose, a goal, a mission!  This is just as true for your students as it is for you!

            Finally, we’ve got to make sure we’re equipped for the work.  How do we make sure we’re equipped?  That’s the work of the collaborative team!  When you follow the Collaborative Team Action Cycle we’ve been talking about, when you focus on the 4 critical questions, you ensure that you and your team are equipped to accomplish your mission!  Nobody in the room is as smart as everybody in the room…it’s the power of a collaborative team.

            So, as we get ready for next week, make sure that you are aware of your challenges and prepare for them. Make sure you’re clear on your mission and share it with those you work with (students included), and finally, make sure the work you’re doing in your PLC equips you for the mission.