Written by 
Healthy leaders deeply value their values. They live and lead by their values.
Three values are the hallmark of healthy leaders and demonstrate that they are in service to others: integrity, humility, and compassion.
This week, we will highlight compassion.
Compassion means you actively seek to know the person behind the employee. This leadership value has been elevated in importance recently as worker focus has changed. People want to be seen and heard more than anything. So, healthy leaders ask and listen with a genuine desire to understand more than they tell and talk.
Compassion is expressed when you convert compassionate thoughts into words and acts of compassion. Theodore Roosevelt said, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” This holds true today more than ever.
Compassionate actions are demonstrated by investing your time and energy to help others grow in positive ways. Healthy leaders focus on the positive and identify employees’ natural gifts. They use strengths-based coaching to help employees develop their gifts which yields a 36% improvement in performance versus weakness-based coaching that yields a 26% decrease in performance.
Healthy leaders find balance. They balance conviction in their beliefs with compassion toward others. They also balance accountability for results with grace for individual circumstances. Maya Angelou said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
Ask yourself these questions to help convert compassion into action:
- What actions of mine tell team members that I am compassionate?
- What actions can I start or perform more consistently to leave no doubt that I compassionate my team?
Develop the mindset and practices of healthy leadership to inspire healthy growth for you, your employees, and your business.
Take this complimentary, 2-minute Healthy Growth Check-up to start your journey.