What qualities do lifelong friends and good leaders have in common?

Abstract

Earlier this summer I traveled to Lake Athens, Texas, just outside Dallas, for another gathering of five high school friends. We graduated high school together and set about earning college degrees, building careers, marrying, and raising children. We kept up with each other here and there, but for the most part, we lived separate lives. With the advent of Facebook, we all reconnected. In 2015, with careers firmly established and children raised and gone, we decided to have our own little high school reunion at a lake house belonging to one of the friends. We’ve met up six times since then. We also did weekly Zoom calls during the pandemic and set up a group text. We communicate with each other often.