Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Hamilton

Lin-Manuel Miranda and cast of Hamilton

Lin-Manuel Miranda and cast of Hamilton

Leaders could learn a few things from Broadway’s blockbuster musical, Hamilton. Beyond setting the real-life conflict and duel between Alexander Hamilton, the first U.S. Treasury Secretary, and Aaron Burr, U.S. Vice President, to hip-hop music, there is a deeper lesson behind the scenes that the Hamilton cast teaches us: Love one another.

While watching the CBS-TV broadcast of the annual Tony Awards on Sunday night, I was struck by how well this Broadway cast performs together, and the lessons they teach us:

Create a caring community. Listening to the various acceptance speeches, it became clear that the Hamilton “family” is a cohesive unit. These people truly care about each other. How are you creating a caring community of support and inclusion in your workplace?

Challenge yourself. As A.W. Tozer said, “Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth.” It took Lin-Manuel Miranda six years to research and write Hamilton. Most of us would have given up trying when the work got too tough. How are you challenging yourself?

Collaborate. The Broadway community is naturally collaborative. Writers. Producers. Directors. Actors. Costume designers. Choreographers. Stage hands. Box office staff. Management. It takes tremendous collective talent to produce a Broadway hit. Miranda had many collaborators in the creation of Hamilton, both on stage and off. How are you collaborating at work?

Celebrate diversity. Hamilton reminds us that an enriched life comes from working alongside people whose differences open up our thinking. Are you surrounding yourself with people who look like you and think like you, or are you searching for opportunities for cultural growth?

Choose love. With the Orlando tragedy occurring the same day as the Tony Awards, a powerful message was shared: Choose love over hate. In Lin-Manuel Miranda’s acceptance speech for best score he said, “And love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love is love… cannot be killed or swept aside…now fill the world with music, love and pride.” Are you choosing to be open minded rather than myopic? To be accepting and non-judgmental? When you are, you create a positive energy that wins.

History reminds us that life’s course can be altered in one split second. This present moment. We cannot recreate what actually happened in the past. We cannot live in the future either. We can only possess this moment, in the now. What are you doing to bring your brilliant, authentic self to your workplace every day?