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Dictionary.com defines paradox as “a seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true.” As I study the field, I find many paradoxes associated with leadership. I see that developing the skills of a great leader requires us to work in apparently contradictory ways that are nonetheless true. I often see my clients and seminar participants wrestle with these issues because they present themselves as extreme and contradictory positions. Many people struggle because they view the paradoxical extremes as either/or positions rather than both/and positions. One dilemma many people have difficulty confronting is, what I call, the Compassion Paradox – As a leader, you must be compassionate AND you must hold people accountable. Sometimes I say it this way: You cannot be too soft if you want to be compassionate. Let me explain. Depending on their personality style and personal experience, most people fall more on one side or the other of these two extremes. They are great at holding people accountable, but not so great at showing compassion. Or, they are great at showing compassion, but not so great at holding people accountable. Learning to work both ends of this divide is one key to becoming an effective leader. We normally fail to appropriately apply this principle because we do not really understand the two extremes. People who are comfortable with accountability view compassion as too “soft”. And, people who are comfortable with compassion view accountability as too “hard”. The truth is that neither extreme is either “soft” or “hard”. They are simply different responses to different leadership situations. Let’s consider the definitions of these two responses Compassion - deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it. Accountability – the condition of being called to account; answerable. As leaders, we must be aware of people’s needs and work to meet them – i.e. we must be compassionate. We must also hold people accountable. If we fail to hold people accountable, the organization fails. If we do not address concerns, people work at bare minimum levels or they leave. Again, the organization fails. Some people are comfortable with this paradox. I find that most are not. My personal challenge is this - I fall more on the compassion side than on the accountability side. With conscious effort, I have improved my ability to hold people accountable. It is still not natural or comfortable for me. I realize, though, that it is necessary. Whatever your bent, I encourage you to look at your behaviors as a leader. Are you more comfortable with compassion or with accountability? Either way, work to develop comfort with the other. When you can choose your response based on the situation, rather than your personal comfort, you will be skilled at applying the Compassion Paradox. You will be one step closer to acting as a highly effective leader. Copyright 2005, Guy Harris You may use this article for electronic distribution if you will include all contact information with live links back to the author. Notification of use is not required, but I would appreciate it. Please contact the author prior to use in printed media.
Ryoko Tani, two-time Olympic Judo gold medalist, said that she will run for Upper House election in this summer. The ruling Democratic Party of Japan held a press conference on May 10 2010, announcing to appoint Tani as its candidate. Article Index: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | 52 | 53 | 54 | 55 | 56 | 57 | 58 | 59 | 60 | 61 | 62 | 63 | 64 | 65 | 66 | 67 | 68 | 69 | 70 | 71 | 72 | 73 | 74 | 75 | 76 | 77 | 78 | 79 | 80 | 81 |
More Articles:1. How Leaders Create Trust People buy from you, offer help, and grant rewards based on trust. Here are ways to increase your success by creating trust. While we do most of these things, missing even one of them can ruin it all.Be Dependable* Deliver what you promise and promise only what you can deliver. Report delays immediately. * Be on time. Leave early for appointments. Set realistic deadlines allowing for the unexpected. * Show courtesy by returning phone calls. * Be predictable. Use self control: anger repels and sc… 2. Character: Is It Necessary In Leadership? (Part Two) PERMISSION TO REPUBLISH: This article may be republished in newsletters and on web sites provided attribution is provided to the author, and it appears with the included copyright, resource box and live web site link. Email notice of intent to publish is appreciated but not required: mail to: brent@actionleadership.comWord count: 838Summary: One element of leadership that many leaders ignore or neglect is character. Is it a necessary ingredient in leadership? The author answers the question with… 3. Create a Positive, Upbeat, "Can-Do" Workforce and Dazzle the Customer with Your Caring! Given the choice of dealing with a positive, upbeat employee with a 'can-do' attitude or dealing with a disgruntled, distracted, uninterested one, which would you choose? No contest. Customers always want the best experience possible; they want it to be easy and pleasant to do business with your company. Enter the real challenge of 'Relationship Management,' the relationships. Until all of our business is done electronically, and much of it might be, managers, in addition to making sure the work… 4. Motivating Unmotivated People Motivating Unmotivated PeopleBy John Strelecky- Author of The Why Are You Here Café If you walk around a Walt Disney World resort or theme park, you are likely to witness something that in most other settings would seem bizarre. Not the presence of a large animated character, although you may witness that also. Rather, at any given moment, a person in dress clothes will be walking from one destination to another and will stop, pick up a piece of paper, a cup, or other piece of trash someone dro… |
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