Think “life”, and “estuary” is hardly the association that comes to mind. But it should be a leading contender: The estuary is a place where many life forms are sustained.

Usually created by the tides, it is where salt water from the ocean and fresh water from the mountains, carried by the river, come together. The salt water, because of its density, is pushed underneath and the fresh water rises to the top.

Therein lies a fitting model for leadership renewal. There is:

1. Shared space
Leadership renewal begins with an intentional sharing of platform where senior leaders provide foundation and stability, and are shoulders on which new leaders can stand.

New leaders should be given opportunities to perform and shine. We mustn’t sink into the tradition of saying, “This was the way it was done in the past; therefore, this is the way it must be done in the future.”

Instead, we should be rising to the challenge of saying, “This was the way it was done in the past because the conditions necessitated this approach. With the present situation, tell me what you think makes sense.”

Senior leaders can recount history and provide a context for new leaders to decide if they are in a suitable place for their story to be formed and told.

But salt water talk must be submerged under fresh water expressions: That’s the place of the new.

2. Shared experience
Leadership renewal is not easy. Those who cannot stomach it will have to leave because the turmoil is disturbing.

Senior leaders who feel they are being edged out may allow their fears and insecurities to rise to the top of their consciousness. Subverted, they might become apt to isolate; emerging leaders will then be left with a sense of alienation.

How the transition is managed is critical. It can be an anxious, uncertain location. Learning to adapt through affirmation and familiarization is key. That is the estuary moment.

Animals that live in the estuary adapt or leave – at low or high tide. It is inherently turbulent. The wonderful thing, however, is that it is a place that is alive, because it hosts thousands of animal and plant species, and new populations are spawned. All over the world, this is an important source of food.

All over the world, this is also a communal place that can be most nurturing. You either exploit a tumultuous situation – as in a revolution in a country – or you take nutrients from that transitional situation and you progress.

3. Safe haven
In a staid organization, some ideas are going to be old – tried, but still old. It’s the course of natural resort because you have cut a rut. The thinking is: Why change something that still works?

At the same time, young people coming in bring fresh ideas. The estuary moment happens when they are given a window of opportunity to flourish.

The tumult develops the emerging leader’s strength. It also develops his endurance.

And what if there were a failure? The old guard can be there to shield the emerging leadership from the wild attacks of outsiders and provide a safety net for recovery, a safe haven.

As estuaries are protected from the full force of the ocean waves by reefs, barrier islands and mud, the established leadership can make certain of success or mitigate failures and perpetuate the circulation of oxygen and nutrients that are needed for the community’s growth.

4. Shared future
Every estuary is unique; no two are the same. Typically, however, there are two characteristics: An estuary is dependent on geology, and the volume of salt and fresh water.

In leadership, it means personality and styles must be balanced with corporate requirements.

That equilibrium takes time to be established. And that’s the benefit of every process of transition: It is not an altogether dark and bleak period. It is the most opportune time!