17 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Deepwater Horizon

Deepwater Horizon is AMAZING!!!  This movie chronicles the events of the April 20th, 2010 explosion on the offshore BP Oil rig Deepwater Horizon.
The movie’s central characters are Mike Williams, played by Mark Wahlberg, and crew chief Jimmy Harrell, played by Kurt Russell.  This film is tense and does a wonderful job honoring the brave men and women who were responsible for saving so many lives during this man-made disaster.  Make sure you see it this weekend!
The following are 17 Leadership Quotes And Lessons From Deepwater Horizon:

1. Leaders Who Are More Concerned With Greed And Saving Money Than Investing Money For The Good Of Their People Put Those People And Their Organizations In Harm’s Way – Because the multi-billion dollar BP Oil Company was unwilling to pay $125,000 for a cement inspection, their rig exploded, burned for 87 days, became the worst oil spill in American history, cost the company billions, and caused 11 men to lose their lives.
2. Leaders Do What Is Necessary To Ensure Their Team’s Success – When the BP inspection team did not review the quality of the cement at the rig’s base, the crew said, “I don’t know if it’s stupid but it ain’t smart.”
3. A Strong Foundation Is Needed For Success – Harrell said, “If cement is compromised, everything is compromised.”
4. Inspection Is A Leader’s Friend – Details matter.  Organizations suffer when leaders neglect any part of their responsibilities.  Prior to the explosion, BP sent the testing team home.
5. Successful Leaders Create Healthy Margin In Every Area Of Their Lives And Organizations – Williams told BP executive Vidrine played by John Malkovic, “Running out of fuel as the plane tires touch the ground is not smart.”
6. Hope Is Not A Strategy Or A Tactic – Williams continued in his discussion with Vidrine, “Hope ain’t a tactic.”
7. Successful Leaders Value The Integrity Of Their People And Systems – Harrell called for a Negative Pressure Test to ensure the integrity of the well.
8. Reckless Leaders Ignore Warning Signs – After the Negative Pressure Test showed some inconsistencies, the BP executives ignored the test results and moved forward with the drilling.
9. Bullies Make Poor Leaders – Vidrine told Harrell, “(It’s) BP’s well, BP’s oil.”  To which Harrell replied, “We’re just the people hired to drill the well.”  And Vidrine said with finality, “And we’re 50 days behind.”
10. What Made You Successful Yesterday Will Not Keep You Successful Tomorrow – Under the leadership of Harrell, Deepwater Horizon won the BP safety award seven years in a row prior to the explosion.
11. Pressure From Leaders Often Cause Poor Decisions By Their Team – The best leaders remove pressure from their teams, not cause it.  As decisions were being made on whether to keep the fuel pipes open or not, Vidrine bullied the crew into making poor decisions.
12. Leaders Keep People Calm During Times Of Crisis – As crew members were panicking while trying to get on the life boats, Williams stepped in to bring a sense of calm during the fiery explosion.
13. Experience Matters During Times Of Crisis – After Harrell was revived he immediately began implementing solutions to get the crew off the rig safely.
14. Spouses Of Leaders Carry A Heavy Burden As Well – People often forget the weight the spouses of pastors, non-profit, athletic, and business leaders carry.  The movie did a great job showing the anguish Williams’s wife Felicia, played by Kate Hudson, carried waiting for news about her husband and then comforting him afterwards with PTSD.
15. Leaders Must Make Hard Choices On A Regular Basis – Hard decisions are a daily part of the leadership journey.  It just comes with the territory.  When facing a life or death issue at the top of the burning rig, Williams told his friend Andrea, “Our choice is to burn or jump.”
16. The Most Important Thing To Emotionally Healthy Leaders Are Their Families – Williams concluded, “My wife’s name is Felicia and my daughter’s name is Sydney and I will see her again.”
17. Crisis Always Drives People Back To Jesus Christ – After safely getting off the rig, all the workers knelt down and said the Lord’s Prayer.  It is true – sooner or later, every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.  Crisis often accelerates the process.

Once again, Deepwater Horizon is a great movie.  Make sure you check it out this weekend.

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