Does your inner voice ever say things to yourself that you would never say to others? Do you find it hard to forgive yourself for mistakes or bounce back after a setback? We can all strengthen our capacity for self-kindness by recognizing its gifts, understanding our resistance to it, and practicing to become the leader that creates a culture of safety and caring.
The journey of life and leadership is a never-ending series of cycles, requiring different optimal action depending on the circumstances. There are two constants central to the work of every compassionate leader: self-compassion and the recognition of our shared common humanity. These two provide a powerful foundation for compassionate leaders to act, and guide their choice of the approach to use.
We all recognize that compassion requires kindness. The research shows that compassion comes more easily to those who nurture instinctively. But if we stop there in our consideration of compassion, we miss out on some of the most important and powerful parts of compassion – those parts that exhibit courage and strength. In organizations in particular, courageous compassion is particularly necessary.
Every organization, every team, everyone faces failure at different times. How we respond can make all the difference in how quickly we bounce back and learn to innovate in the future. In many organizations or teams, the typical response to negative events is shame and blame. To create resilient, learning cultures, leaders need instead to respond with compassionate actions.
