In the past, you may have worked under a boss who had no idea how to incorporate any human element into their relationships with employees. If so, chances are your memories of this time are not fond. There is a good chance you watched this person harm and fumble their way through leadership responsibilities. Alternatively, you have likely heard the horror stories of the employees who were forced to stay at work or come into work, under less-than-ideal circumstances. The soon-to-be-dad stuck at work while his wife is in labor is an extreme example but one that is not without truth. Put simply, this leadership style is the result of a lack of compassion for employees. And this is no way to run an office.
Author Deepak Chopra spoke to this, “Enlightened leadership is spiritual if we understand spirituality not as some kind of religious dogma or ideology but as the domain of awareness where we experience values like truth, goodness, beauty, love, and compassion, and also intuition, creativity, insight and focused attention.”
To sum this up – working to cultivate compassion in yourself as a leader will be of great benefit to your company and employees. See, people thrive most when they feel supported, and compassion is one of the greatest forms of this. But bringing this into existence may push you to your breaking point in more ways than one. To help you avoid this, we put together five strategies for being a more compassionate leader.