The Courage Playbook. Gus Lee
of criminal activity to get their way.
In Tier 2, people say, “I'll do whatever it takes and I'll do what I want when I feel like it,” from being biased, breaching ethics, lying, backstabbing, and disrespecting to faking data and inflating stats. Tier 2 is Tier 1 with lip gloss or a bow tie. In Tier 2, people deny responsibility, blame others, and justify their ditching of ethical and organizational standards by saying, “Everyone else does it.” Many Tier 2 people, often using rationalizations and justifications, believe that these are right choices.
Tier 2 family groups are often overly controlled. Spouses can become unduly compliant. Children can be forgotten or driven to overachieve to satisfy parental expectations. Appearing to be normal, happy, and content is more important than the inner reality of their lives.
Tier 3: Benign self‐interest: success via results. What do I have to do to not fail? This person tries to survive in a harshly competitive world. Tier 3 people struggle for results and success. They try to please those in power, are often yes‐people, quickly take credit, make no waves, avoid controversies and conflicts, look away when others are being harmed, curry approval and seek comfort, and are perpetually worried and stressed. A minority of them work hard; most just try to get by. Individuals in Tier 3 see themselves as “good people” who won't do wrong. But neither will they stand for principles, choosing to be “nice” in moral situations instead of courageously and respectfully doing the right thing, face‐to‐face.
In Tier 3, bending to their fears, people say, “What can you do? It'll never change.” “Don't fight City Hall.” “He doesn't want to hear that.” “People don't change.” “Really, it's none of my business.” “Let them take care of it.” “He was asking for it, anyway.” “Thankfully, I don't have to take responsibility.” “It's not the right time to bring it up.” “We're not covering things up—we're protecting the integrity of our [family or organization].” “I'm not being dishonest—I'm just discreet.” “I'm not a coward; I'm just conflict avoidant.”
In families, children are usually not taught skills to discern the highest right action. Nor are they routinely guided to unconditionally respect all persons. Worse, they routinely overhear harsh and vicious language—not from screens—but from parents who angrily criticize people who hold different opinions. This can cultivate in children a persona of extreme intolerance. Further, they're seldom trained in practical behavioral problem solving or taught how to cope and persevere in the face of disappointment.
Most of us have pitched our tents in the center of Tier 3 country, which is compelling proof of our Age of Fear.
Tier 4: The heroic moral ideal. After consciously eliminating the lower‐tier options, what's the absolute best, ideal thing that I can do? In Tier 4, one courageously discerns that action, boldly does it despite risks to self‐interest, generously trains others to do the same, and does the Five Steps to Courage to improve in everything one does.
In Tier 4, people say to others, “I admire you the most for doing the right thing.” “How are you doing with that? Can I help you?” “I'm not understanding this decision. Could you tell us more?” “You may be right, but I need to understand your reasoning before I support it.” “Thank you for seeing me in private. I was disappointed by what you said to Biff in our meeting.” “You're blaming her but it was my fault.”
Tier 4's right action can at times include not taking immediate action because we need more time to discern, to gather more critical information, or because the greater good requires withdrawal. When I was in law enforcement, a man had witnessed a criminal gang member, who lived in his neighborhood, murder a rival. The witness received a message that his family would be killed if he merely went to court. Unable to provide round‐the‐clock protection for him and his family, I chose not to subpoena him. That decision still bothers me, but I discerned that it wouldn't have been the highest right action to compel him to risk the lives of his family.
“What percentage of people,” asked Bella Cruz, “live in Tier 4?”
“Sadly, not many,” I said. “Some in the leader development guild believe it's less than 5 percent. We've lost the language and the skills of doing the right thing. It's a terrible loss.”
“I agree,” said Gary. “I've gotten decades of training and I still struggle to solve basic relationship challenges. But which Tier produces the best results?”
I showed them the table in Figure 1.5:
“Fifteen‐hundred percent greater profits?” asked Gary. “Where did you get that?”
| TIER 4 KEY INFO | TIER 1 | TIER 2 | TIER 3 |
TIER 4  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FORTUNE 500 $ RESULTS | High rate of failure | High rate of failure | Achieves 30% of expectations | Out‐earns the general market by 1500% |
Figure 1.5 Tier 4 Earning & Results Power
“It's from Stanford Business School's longitudinal research. They identified the Fortune 500s that made the greatest profits over a hundred‐year period—and how they managed to do it. They were shocked to learn that the few firms that consistently did the right thing far out‐earned the entire results‐oriented, profit‐seeking US business system. It shows that when we focus on the bottom line, we tend not to get what we want. The best way to make money is to care about your people and your customers’ welfare, and that takes care of the bottom line. It means that the actual bottom line is doing the right thing. The financial outcome is only a by‐product.”
“I have such a hard time believing,” said Bella Cruz, “that Tier 1 and 2 people fail. They always seem to get ahead.”
“Many do at first,” I said. “But can anyone truly trust or really follow people who are malicious, cruel, and mistreat others? People in Tiers 1 and 2 get hate instead of love; good people leave them; and gutsy people confront them and even sue and prosecute them. Thieves cheat and steal, but they have to live in the shadows, unable to trust anyone. A few keep what they steal, but constantly waiting for a detective to ring the bell is a bad life. Their own people are likely to give them a harsh ending. In business, studies tell us that most results‐only and unethical firms fail.”
Bella slowly nodded her head. “But they sure hurt a lot of people before that happens.”
“And they'll continue as long as people don't practice their courage.”
I then asked Gary and Bella to each fill in a blank Tier 4 table (Figures 1.6 and 1.7).
| TIER 4 KEY INFO | TIER 1 WORST I COULD DO | TIER 2 ALMOST WORST | TIER 3 SHORT‐TERM RESULTS | TIER 4 THE BEST POSSIBLE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GARY PERSONS | Fire Aiden & ruin him personally | Fire him & ruin his career |
Pressure and threaten Aiden |