Finding Meaning in Suffering: Business Leadership When Your World Is Falling Apart

Each year, I read Man’s Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl. It is one of the greatest books ever written and a reminder of the best and worst of the human condition.

The central premise of this famous book is that “to be human is to suffer,” and that how we handle our suffering defines us.

This became an unexpected topic of conversation with my friend Dana Malstaff. We were speaking at the same event recently, and I took advantage of the opportunity to bring together some friends for dinner. When the other two people paired off in conversation, Dana had a chance to say something to me privately-she was going through a gut-wrenching and stressful period.

The deep sadness on her face resonated with something buried in my own heart. For a moment, we were connected by the quiet acknowledgment that suffering, as Frankl taught, is universal-sometimes the greatest comfort is knowing you’re not alone in it.

The private moment passed as the server brought our food, and the four friends resumed a more public conversation. I felt inadequate as a friend, knowing that an opportunity to comfort her in the moment had passed.

The next day, I flew home to the other side of the country, but I could not get that look on…