The Heart of a Leader
By Kajal Mehta
Dr. Howard Koh, the Harvey V. Fineberg Professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and the 14th U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health, is a man full of memorable phrases. While his lexicon of adages is impressive alone, Koh stands out most as a paragon of his own inspirational quotes. He exemplifies leadership and perseverance throughout his multifaceted career and life.
Koh spent the first 30 years of his career practicing as a physician, but found himself struggling with the idea that so many of his patients were “suffering preventable ailments.” His initial interest in preventing tobacco-related illness led him to a Master of Public Health degree from Boston University, and spawned a new career tirelessly directed at fulfilling his calling. As he encountered additional relevant public health issues, his interests and areas of expertise within the field grew. In his steadfast dedication to public health, his broad range of focus has included homelessness, skin oncology, newborn screening, organ donation, bioterrorism response, health literacy, and public health leadership.
Thus, when Koh received a phone call in 1997, nominating him for Commissioner of Public Health for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, there was no hesitation. He tells the audience,
“If you ever have the chance to go into public service, do it.”
Koh recounted the experience as both grueling, but incredibly rewarding. In order to adapt to this role, Koh had to expand his leadership skills in capacities he had never imagined or been taught. From running a small lab with 10 researchers, Koh was now faced with the immense undertaking of leading a state department of 3,000 employees, tasked with new roles like managing clinicians, politicians, and lobbyists, and testifying to the state legislature regularly. This rigorous experience and his personal transformation in leadership undoubtedly prepared him for his nomination in 2007 by President Obama for U.S. Assistant Secretary for Health and Human Services.
When asked about his thoughts on leadership as innate or a learned skill, Koh firmly believes that leaders are individuals with leadership skills. His focus since returning from public service back to academia has been to teach those leadership skills.
What advice does he have for those of us looking to be leaders? First and foremost, have a purpose. One of his favorite quotes is: “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” And how do we find our purpose? “Be broad like the sky,” as his father used to say.
Koh proposes that by learning from everything and everyone around us, we both stay humble and inevitably find our calling.
Koh’s last piece of advice is a humbling and striking call to action. He posits that leadership is about interpersonal skills, but emphasizes bolstering our shared humanity above the idea of winning people over. Heeding Maya Angelou’s philosophy that “people will never forget how you make them feel,” Koh encourages genuine connections with those around us. Perhaps we can start by looking up from our phones and saying hello to our neighbors, colleagues and friends. As Koh remarks, by forming these human connections, we can start to tender the fire of transformation within the hearts of those around us.
If there is a new personal motto to take from Dr. Howard Koh’s recent Voices Studio recording, it definitely is:
“Leadership is never easy: you must have a purpose, have an encouraging heart, and be willing to challenge the odds to make a difference.”
For more from the Voices in Leadership (@VoicesHSPH) series at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (@HarvardHSPH), visitwww.hsph.harvard.edu/voices.
Story edited by Emilia Ling. For more on Emilia, check out her twitter page @emjling
