Recently my wife and I cruised the Inside Passage of Alaska.  Alaska is known for its beauty, its wondrous landscapes and plentiful wildlife.  The cruise ship was able to glide through numerous mini icebergs right up to Hubbard Glacier. Side excursions enabled us to see Mendenhall Glacier, sea otters, whales, sea lions, bear and a moose, waaayyy off in the distance. One of the most exciting points of our trip was spotting the Bald Eagle.

It didn’t take long to locate the adults.  The guide suggested looking for what looked like golf balls hidden in the tree tops.  Sure enough, the white heads started to appear.

 Eagles are monogamous.  They mate for life and use the same nest each year.  They tend to nest in an inaccessible place, incubating a small clutch of eggs for six to eight weeks.  The young mature slowly, reaching full adult plumage at five or six years. Eagles have excellent vision because their eyes are densely packed with sensory cells.  Humans typically have 200,000 light-sensitive cells per square millimeter of retina, while eagles have around a million, or five times more.  Finally, where people see just three basic colors, eagles see five, enabling them to pick out even well-camouflaged prey. 

Bald eagles have been endangered but have finally made a comeback.  Since they are at the top of the food chain, they are most sensitive to environmental disturbances.  They are a proud bird, dedicated to their families and determined to survive.

Ty Hanson, in his article titled “Through the Eyes of an Eagle” points out a number of characteristics that we can get from the eagle.  By observing and studying this magnificent bird, we can pick up on leadership and sales professional skills.  Here are the four that Ty addressed.

1. Vision—The eagle can see great distances.  They are capable of looking directly into the sun and not get blinded.  As the CEO of your business, you must have a vision that guides and leads your team toward your goals.  The vision must be big and focused.  A big and focused vision will produce incredible results.
   
2. Eagles never eat dead meat.  You will never see an eagle eating meat that they didn’t kill themselves.  An eagle is not a scavenger.  It hunts and kills its own prey.  You as the CEO of your business must go where the action is as it will not come to you. That’s why prospecting is so important as a daily discipline for survival.
   
3. Eagles take chances.  As storms approach, lesser birds head for shelter, but the mighty eagle spreads its wings and with a great cry mounts upon the powerful updrafts, soaring to heights of glory.  Eagles use the storm to lift him to theses great heights and so do great leaders.  You should do the same when storms or challenges come your way.  Don’t run from them.  Use these storms as learning experiences that will help develop your character and perseverance.
   
4. The eagle is known for its ferocity, yet no member of the bird family is more gentle and attentive to its young. Their whole goal is to teach their young how to leave the nest and fend for themselves.   At just the right time, the mother eagle begins to teach her eaglets how to fly.  She gathers the eaglet onto her back, and spreading her wings, flies high.  Suddenly she swoops out from under the eaglet and as it falls, it is forced to learn what its wings are for until the mother catches it once again on her wings. The process is repeated.  If the young is slow to learn or cowardly, she returns the eaglet to the nest, and begins to tear it apart, until there is nothing left for the eaglet to cling to.  Then she nudges him off the cliff.  Teach and train your team over and over again the basics of survival.  Give them responsibility, allow them discretion in decision making and force them to leave their comfort zone to help build their successes.

Eagles are the symbol of freedom in America. They fly high, endure challenges, view the big picture from their lofty flight paths and carefully calculate how to swoop in and catch their prey. In our challenging economy, those with great vision and perseverance will survive. By studying the eagle, you can develop the leadership skills necessary to grow and become very profitable, indeed.

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