Page 70 - Leadership Lessons of the White House Fellows

LEADERS FOCUS ON THE MISSION

and friendly and responded to his questions in a professional, direct way.
However, there was one question that neither the paperwork nor the staff
could answer and that Veblen was determined to understand: What was
the mission of the Department of the Interior?
After several days, Veblen was sent to meet Interior Secretary Stewart
Udall to get acquainted and discuss the young Fellow’s assignment. Udall
was a lawyer who had served in the U.S. House of Representatives from
his home state of Arizona before President Kennedy named him Secretary
of the Interior. In that role he became one of the country’s most fervent
conservationists, pushing through many of the environmental laws that
sprang from President Johnson’s Great Society legislation, including the
Clean Water Restoration Act, the Wilderness Act, the National Trails
System, and the Endangered Species Preservation Act, to name a few.
When young Veblen appeared at his office door in September 1965, Udall
skipped the pleasantries and went right to the heart of the matter.
“Well, it’s good to have you with us. I hear you’re ready to go to work.
What have you learned so far?”
“As a matter of fact, lots,” Veblen replied. “The variety and breadth of
things going on in the department is amazing. My week of reading has
given me a pretty good sense of the programs, but I must admit that I’m
somewhat frustrated. I have yet to come across a simple, straightforward
statement of Interior’s mission. Nobody has been able to tell me. That
suggests that either this place is adrift or I haven’t figured out yet the right
questions to ask.”
Stewart stared at Veblen for a moment and then laughed.
“You know what, that’s just about what I said to President Kennedy
when he asked me to take this job,” Udall said. “And then President
Kennedy said to me, ‘Stew, come over here and take a look at this map
showing the national parks. What a great country. We have a national park
system second to none. The problem is, the parks are all out in the West
and the people are all in the East. Your mission, should you agree to be
Secretary of Interior, is to figure out how to put parks where the people
are.’ And that, Tom, is Interior’s mission! So, now that you know the mis-
sion, what would you like to do around here?”
With that simple and clear mission communicated from his boss, every-
thing clicked for Veblen, who enthusiastically responded, “I want to work
on the things that most concern you. The tougher they are, the better I’ll

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