Tempelhof Airport in Berlin, having ceased operation a couple of years ago, officially became a city park this month.  It was the same month sixty-one years ago when the people of West Berlin cheered the triumphant conclusion to the Berlin Airlift.  The memory of the Lüftbrucke or “air bridge” is a reminder that constraints and adversity can be catalysts for sound decisions leading to successful outcomes.  Acceptance of limitations is often the first step to better solutions, because incorporating limits into any plan demands a complicated and sometimes contradictory mix of patience, humility, creativity, and daring.  America’s finest hours have not necessarily been when America had superior power and the ability to dictate terms, but when the odds of averting failure were long and the situation precarious. (more…)