Leadership and the Power of Love
During this Easter week when Christians around the world celebrate the ultimate demonstration of sacrifice and servanthood it is timely to consider our responsibility to share love in every aspect of life, especially in our vocational environments. Since time immemorial our human nature has been towards a desire to achieve power through force, persuasion, greed, and financial means as opposed to more positive and less salient attributes such as gentleness, kindness, and meekness.
An element rarely considered or discussed at work is love. The love referred to here is not a romantic love and oftentimes is not emotional either, but rather pertains to goodwill, active listening, and servant leadership. Servant leadership was demonstrated in an untold number of ways by my Savior--washing of feet, performing miracles, even submitting himself to the authorities and ultimately death for our sake.
So how do we carry out servant leadership in every day lives? In the workplace, many of those of us in managerial roles are taught from the outset to not ask our associates to carry out any task that we ourselves would not also perform. Additionally we are to hear our team members, give consideration to their thoughts and ideas, and take an interest in not only their development in the workplace, but in the lives of their family and friends away from work. We are also role models to those we supervise, they observing us and how we live all aspects of our lives. As a husband, wife, parent, or friend we have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of someone else each day whether it be through a task, the commitment of time, or just taking a moment to listen. Consider as well those we know who are alone, have suffered loss, or perhaps even those who appear to "have it all," yet are empty.
What you find is that in deliberately reaching out to someone else, you not only minister to them, but encourage and uplift yourself as well. Thus a true and lasting powerful force is generated. Happy Easter!
Kirk
An element rarely considered or discussed at work is love. The love referred to here is not a romantic love and oftentimes is not emotional either, but rather pertains to goodwill, active listening, and servant leadership. Servant leadership was demonstrated in an untold number of ways by my Savior--washing of feet, performing miracles, even submitting himself to the authorities and ultimately death for our sake.
So how do we carry out servant leadership in every day lives? In the workplace, many of those of us in managerial roles are taught from the outset to not ask our associates to carry out any task that we ourselves would not also perform. Additionally we are to hear our team members, give consideration to their thoughts and ideas, and take an interest in not only their development in the workplace, but in the lives of their family and friends away from work. We are also role models to those we supervise, they observing us and how we live all aspects of our lives. As a husband, wife, parent, or friend we have an opportunity to make a difference in the life of someone else each day whether it be through a task, the commitment of time, or just taking a moment to listen. Consider as well those we know who are alone, have suffered loss, or perhaps even those who appear to "have it all," yet are empty.
What you find is that in deliberately reaching out to someone else, you not only minister to them, but encourage and uplift yourself as well. Thus a true and lasting powerful force is generated. Happy Easter!
Kirk
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