Turning Around a Hopeless Scenario

The area had once been a thriving pocket of land with astonishing wildlife, but now it was completely barren and dried up.

A man was on a mission to change that.

He got on his knees, opened his bag, and began placing some seeds in the ground. The next day, he did the same, and the day after that, and the day after that.

Jadav Payeng would return each morning for 37 years — and the area where he planted those seeds for the first time in 1979 is now a sprawling forest in eastern India full of luscious trees, elephants, tigers and rhinoceroses.

If it were not for "The Forest Man of India," though, it might well still be abandoned.

Payeng didn't set out to build a 1,360-acre forest.

He simply set out to plant a tree, then another, and another — and his supreme commitment has some key reminders for us.

Some of us inherit seemingly hopeless situations. We take over floundering teams with terrible resources that others have abandoned. We get assigned a project with countless previous missteps that's essentially been left for dead. We have to navigate extreme turbulence with what feels like no help.

A large swath of people will say the endeavor is too time consuming and not worth it.

But a select few will view as an opportunity with limitless potential. They are the ones willing to get on their knees and plant the seeds — and they frequently make the greatest difference.

While circumstances certainly vary, turning around a seemingly hopeless leadership scenario requires four key elements:

1. A vision- What is the uncommon goal and why won't this fail?2. A strategy- What specific, unique methods are we going to implement to bring about the desired change?3. Conviction- We will not see rewards for our efforts every single day. Will our confidence waiver?4. Sacrifice- There will be major tradeoffs in the form of time, money, resources. Are we willing to concede these? Are we willing to be called "crazy" by some?

Ultimately, there is little secret to creating a masterpiece from scratch. It takes every day work, supreme devotion, and an unrelenting desire to manifest a vision.

Not many will be willing to show up for something with no guaranteed reward.

But the few who do can leave behind a transcendent legacy and create impactful change — and that's the greatest leadership honor of all.