Being a more humane leader.
Part II of a 2-part series on why we need more humanity in workplaces. NOW.
Welcome to Thriving Habitats.
Between the letting go of what we know and the taking shape of what’s to come - in that river of deep unknown - lie the greatest possibilities. Row into their full flow.
In the last few years, we have seen a seismic shift globally in what we expect from our leaders and from work. We have also seen a new breed of fearless, heart-led and long-term oriented leaders step up to the challenge.
When the world watched what happened to George Floyd, we mourned together and vowed to do better. In my organization, it turned to swift action to foster a culture of inclusion and belonging for all, showing up in policies, practices and decisions. During the pandemic, leaders who combined empathy with delivering results swiftly rose above the more traditional outcome-only leaders - Jacinda Ardern, former Prime Minister of New Zealand, is a prime example of this new style of leader.
The Great Resignation wave seen globally was a reflection of the way today’s workforce is rethinking work and its meaning and place in our lives. People are craving purpose, meaning, connection and significance.
Time to reflect deeply during the last year has crystallized for me a truth that was already germinating its way into my consciousness for many years.
The war metaphor of business is out of alignment with the needs of the diverse workforce of today. I believe the world is calling for a more nurturing, compassionate, emotional and humane way of leading in the corporate corridors of power.
We do not yet know the shape of what is to come, but as the norms are shaking loose, we have choice. And my call is to all leaders - let the hemline of your humanity more than peek out from under your corporate skirts.
A new organic, nature-inspired and more enduring metaphor for leadership is taking form. Embrace it.
Move from extracting performance by squeezing individuals, to generating growth by enabling the whole ecosystem.
Winning a war results in casualties on both sides, don’t be that leader. Tend a garden, build a sustainable legacy.
Be a corporate gardener.
Celebrate differences and adaptations - diversity strengthens the system’s ability to thrive. The more your team looks like the populations that it serves, the higher your chances of successfully serving that community’s needs.
Beyond representation, ask yourself how ALL members of the team are being invited into conversations and how you are creating a safe space for healthy dissent.
Allow communication to flow freely through the root networks and fungal systems - a distributed, complex ecosystem is much more capable of responding quickly to threats to its survival.
Ask yourself:
Who is missing from this meeting? Who else needs to be a part of this conversation?
Who has lived experience that could add a contrasting perspective, or deepen the discussion?
What formal and informal ways of communicating exist on my team?
How quickly can people pass insights and ideas to each other? How are they empowered to act on those?
Calibrate the stress in the system.
Performance is an output, like fruit. Focus on the input conditions in your control - what will yield the highest quality of fruit in plenty?
Some questions to ask yourself are:
What is the quality of interpersonal relationships in my team?
What is the level of trust that exists - do team members feel comfortable to bring up problems or discuss difficult issues?
How do I respond to mistakes, do I give space for experiments and focus on lessons learnt?
Monitor the temperature, extreme heat can kill the vibrancy & life potential of the whole system.
I once had a leader say to me that the culture of the organization ‘cooks you, allowing the cooked potatoes to rise fastest to the top’.
It was meant to inspire. Unfortunately, once a potato is cooked it’s only good for consumption - its growth potential is dead. Great if you’re in the mashed potatoes business, not so much when you deal with people.
So, find the right pressure valves to release stress in your team when needed - What can be stopped or dropped? Who needs a break? - and create urgency when needed through project sprints.
And don’t forget to calibrate yourself - what do YOU need?
Quit optimizing the individual.
Optimize the ecosystem for growth, nurture relationships within the system and incentivize the individual to contribute their highest value to the system.
Accept that ebb and flow, inhale and exhale, contraction and expansion, growth and rest - these patterns are natural and generative.
When you place undue emphasis on consistent over-delivery at the individual level, what you get is a set of highly risk-averse individuals who produce consistently well within the lines.
Innovation is spiky, experimental and comes in spurts or waves. Every wave doesn’t need to be the biggest - the small rolls set up for the big ones that you can surf to shore. Give the space for your best surfers to gear up for the big waves by occasionally paddling the small rolls.
And finally… give yourself permission to be human at work.
Being human is not a flaw - it is your single biggest under-leveraged asset.
Feel your feelings. Tell stories. Laugh. Do amazing things. Apologize for hurting someone. Make friends at work. Chase aspirational goals. Ask for help. Believe in someone more than they believe in themselves. Be curious. Make place in the circle for those different from you. Challenge yourself to be better. Speak from the heart.
Grow into your best version. And along the way…
Find your purpose, serve your community and build your legacy as a humane leader.
You can go here for Part I of this series. Thanks for reading!
Best,
Abby