on Leadership … by Steven Davis, CAE

In a previous post I mentioned a Scott Geller quote about “authentic leaders.” In this post, I would like to examine another one of Geller’s mentions, wherein he comments on statements made by Bill George, also quoted in an earlier post, saying that George “claims you cannot be authentic without compassion. Compassion is developed through profound understanding of other people’s situations and feelings.” George goes on to say that, “empathy is a synonym for compassion.” And this ties-in directly with an Oprah Winfrey quote shared in an earlier post, “Leadership is about empathy. It is about having the ability to relate and to connect with people for the purpose of inspiring and empowering their lives.”

All of this taken together, to be an effective leader you need to understand people and to know how to work with them in best possible fashion. You need to be able to get inside of people, to understand their positions, their expertise and areas of contribution, their needs, and what makes them tick. If you can be this level of a workplace psychologist you are then positioned to know how to work with people most effectively. And if you are genuine in your dealings with these individuals … if your compassion and empathy are real and heart-felt, people will want to follow you. They will accept your empowerment and work with you to make a difference. They will need and want to be a part of the leader’s drive to impact a situation or accomplish a goal.

And this is when a total team evolves. This is when you have “one for all and all for one.” This is when authentic leaders separate themselves from those who simply wear a title.  And this is when the opportunity for progress and achievement are at their best.

Author Cross-references:

Scott Geller: Also see posts 12/12/08, 1/28/09

Bill George: Also see post 12/12/08

Oprah Winfrey: Also see post 1/16/09

Key Word Cross-references:

Authentic/Believable/Genuine: Also see posts 1/2/09, 1/28/09, 2/25/09, 3/16/09, 10/26/09, 12/5/09, 1/4/10, 2/24/10, 5/26/10

Benevolent/Caring/Compassionate/Empathetic: Also see posts 12/16/08, 1/16/09, 11/11/09, 12/5/09, 1/4/10

Empowerment: Also see posts 12/12/08, 1/16/09, 5/17/09, 9/9/09

Inspiration/Motivation: Also see posts 1/16/09, 2/3/09, 2/25/09, 5/17/09, 6/5/09, 6/26/09, 9/9/09, 2/18/10, 2/24/10, 4/19/10

Psychology: Also see posts 1/16/09, 2/25/09

Relating: 1/4/10

Team: Also see posts 1/13/09, 4/20/09, 8/3/09, 1/6/10, 4/19/10, 5/26/10

Tags: Leadership

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