Gene Kranz Essay Example for Free

Gene Kranz Essay Apollo 13 directed by Ron Howard is the story of the real space mission that took place in 1969. The three astronauts had always dreamed of landing on the moon but not long after the astronauts launched into space did they realize that the task would be near impossible due to an explosion of an oxygen tank. Getting home safe became their next mission. A character in this film from whom I learned something is Gene Kranz played by Ed Harris. I learned that thinking calmly helps you and people around you to think positively in hard situations and that instead of being scared and giving up in tough situations, you should think outside the box and find an solution. The audience learns from this about the importance of the idea(s) of leadership attributes and skills. Gene Kranz is an important character in Apollo 13 because even with a responsibility of the whole mission which is going to through a crisis, he was still calm and determined as ever. For example when the whole staff is tensed and worried, Kranz voice cut through a simple command, Lets work the problem, people but not make worse by guessing. This shows me that Ron Howard knew that every problem has a solution, or at least the damage could be managed, but you have to be methodical and work through the issues. Stop worrying, and start working. Another example of a lesson from Gene Kranz is When the NASA director said that this could be the worst disaster in the history of NASA, Kranz cut him off. With all due respect sir, I think this is going to be our finest hour. This shows that he more focused on the positive goal than think the negative. This positiveness also gives him and people around the confidence needed to complete the mission. This is how the script and director show us the importance of leaders positive attitude in tough situations and what I learn from him. Another reason Gene Kranz is a character from whom to learn is because he never portrays any fear or sense of panic that he might be feeling and always thinking clearly as to what can be done next. Always in control and remain in the moment. For example when he says Weve never lost an American in space, were sure as heck not going to lose one on my watch Failure is not an option! By this example Rom Howard shows us that leaders are supposed to have these attributes of Firmness and Flexibility. Being on a firm to do  something and think of flexibly ideas of how to do it. We could also see this when he says I dont care what anything was designed to do. I care about what it can do. As NASAs scientists worked the problem, Kranz made them think outside the box. They broke down systems and used the parts to create new tools and systems that helped saved lives. By showing us these things which he does/says/ experiences, director emphasises the idea of never treating failure as a possible option or outcome which is also important in our own lives. Gene Kranz is an important character from Apollo 13 because the director uses him to teach me lessons about being able to think calmly in tough situations like an anchor in a storm and that to never be scared of failure and give up. These ideas are also importa nt to my own life because there may be a lot of tough situations coming up in my life, which may only be solved only if I dont get scared and think calmly. If I get scared of failure and back off my life would end being a regrettable one.