One woman sitting alone in a room changed her world

An inspiring portrait of a game changer - -

Yesterday, a colleague pointed me to Ron Heifetz and Marty Linsky's book "Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading." It opens with the story of a woman on an Native American reservation who, seeing how alcoholism was tormenting her community, founded an AA group. At first, there were no comers. She set up a neat circle of chairs each week and sat alone in the room. She told her skeptical friend, "I was not alone...I was there with the spirits and the ancestors; and one day, our people will come." After enduring years of being mocked because of how fiercely she was challenging her community's norms, things changed - the room was full, and the community was getting sober.

Where can each of us choose to take a quiet, powerful stand for good?