Friends, I am surrounded by platitudes.
- Be kind.
- Be an admired leader.
- Show courage.
- Show compassion.
But no one provides examples of any of these from lived experiences.
I will give you some real-world evidence of kindness and compassion – so that you can use these as a starting point for further thought.
- One of my colleagues never forgets a birthday. If someone is going through difficult times, she buys flowers at her own expense – because she is kind.
- My friend Chris keeps an eye on his company intranet for jobs, and then sends links to friends, even if they are not looking. And when they are looking, he sends them the link, asks for their CV, sends this to the hiring manager and puts in a good word. Five people have landed great roles as a result of Chris’s kindness.
- Before Covid, a project manager was hired for a busy team– and whose daughter was having a baby in another state. The first week of employment, the manager encouraged the new PM to travel to be with her daughter and work remotely. This was compassion.
- A manager is actively trying to create a pathway for women to return to work – after sabbaticals, raising families etc. This manager does not need to do this – but she wants to help as much as she can. This is admired leadership.
- Another colleague actively seeks to help young people – and she works with refugee children (in high schools) by mentoring them to build their confidence.
Friends, all of the above examples are from people in my sphere. None of these folks would speak about any of these actions themselves – and they don’t want to be named.
It’s easy to tell people to be kind or compassionate etc. But don’t just stop there. Tell us how it’s done – so that we can learn from examples.
#kindness #leadership #compassion #wecare
