High Performance Leadership

When I worked for GE and I was learning project management, they had a popular expression that was often spoken with pride and just a touch of arrogance. "In God we trust, all others show us the data." We used to say that opinions were like noses. Everyone's got one. So what. What does the data say? Since then data has become even more important. We rely on data for so much. It drives decisions. It sorts product offerings. It calibrates without feeling the temperature of the times. And yet...what about the heart? Haven't you sometimes had a feeling that something wasn't right and discovered that you were right? There wasn't any data to tell you, it just hit you as true. Relying on your gut instincts can be dangerous. Our intuition is wrong at a surprisingly high frequency. But data isn't everything. How we feel matters. How our customers feel matters. What we bring to our work through our emotions matters. Rely on the data. What other choice do...

If you aren't learning compassion with your organization, study someplace else. Then bring back what you learn.   Have you ever been involved in a heartless organization? It's hard to figure out. It's not a person so how can it feel so heartless and cold. Where is the emotion? Where is the compassion? Why does it seem like people are treated like numbers.  People matter more than profits. When you find yourself in an organization that gets that reversed, or that simply provides no evidence of compassion you have some work to do. You may not need to leave (although given the proper opportunity, you may choose to do that), but you do need to find a sense of heart someplace else. Study someplace else. Gather with people who care. Learn the many lessons of compassion. Then bring those lessons back and introduce compassion to your organization. You'll feel better. Your organization will improve.  Are you learning more about compassion in your organization?