Lessons Learned About Compassionate Leadership
I was recently accepted into a program organized by the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors called “Compassionate Leadership for Public Health Practitioners”. I identify as a servant leader, which for me is related to compassionate leadership. This six-week training gave me some additional tools to add to my toolbox and provided a rare opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions with my peers about issues that we face in our everyday work.
The following are some of the lessons that really stuck with me from this program and what they mean to me.
· Compassion is a relational skill…I always say that people are the most important resources for any organization. Money is a resource that we spend a lot of time focusing on, but I have seen time and time again where a group of motivated people can make a lot happen with very few monetary resources. Compassion as a relational skill encourages me to focus on my relationships and to identify opportunities to build relationships, that are often personal, with the people that I work with. Caring about each other, even to a small degree, is very motivating.
· “Call people in, instead of calling people out”…As I did more research I realized that this concept comes from the civil rights and reproductive advocate and organizer Loretta J. Ross. Calling people out starts a conversation on a negative or antagonistic note. Calling people in approaches a discussion, even when there is a disagreement, with compassion and a recognition of the context that surrounds us and encourages a conversation. This is the more productive way to engage.
· Lead from any position/we all have personal power…Titles and position in an organizational structure are important; however, compassionate leadership encourages all of us to consider the power that we have in whatever position we hold to offer compassion and grace to the people with whom we regularly engage. For me, this means that I have a lot of potential to create a compassionate culture with my team. I can work within the structure of my organization to meet the individual needs of my team members.
The facilitators recommended From Strength to Strength by Arthur Brooks as a follow up reading. I have not yet read this, but I plan to check it out.
What does compassionate leadership mean to you?
