Compassionate Leadership

On December 5, 2013, the world lost one its truly great leaders - Nelson Mandela.  One of the most striking aspects of his life and his passing were the accolades that echoed from around the world and from a variety of political circles.  Nelson Mandela's leadership and legacy transcended cultures, extended well beyond his country and Africa, and likely will continue to serve as inspiration for many for years if not generations to come.  This was certainly not always the case.  Mandela was a controversial figure for much of his life.  At points in time he was denounced as a communist and a terrorist.  Ultimately, however, he stayed true to a course and his cause and gained international acclaim for his activism and leadership, having received more than 250 honours, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize. 

There are certainly those far better positioned than I to expound upon the particular leadership style and qualities of Mandela. However, one quality that stands out for me is the compassion he demonstrated for those that persecuted and imprisoned him.  Aside from a life spent as a second-class citizen in his own land, Mandela also endured 27 years of imprisonment and more than a few of those years virtually cut off from his family and the world.  Mandela could easily have become embittered and vengeful during this time.  He could also just as easily given in to desires expressed by many of his followers for justice for all past wrongs.  He certainly could have fallen into the same pattern as other resistance leaders upon assuming power and exacted swift and bloody justice on his former foes.  The fact that he did not is testament to his personal integrity, his commitment to a strongly held set of personal values, and a compassion for his jailers and countrymen.  And not only did he not simply restrain himself in this regard, he in fact became friends with and came to be revered by many of his former adversaries.

This compassionate style of leadership is not something that we are typically used to or comfortable with in our business environments either.  By way of example, I was just reading an article that described how Bill and Hilary Clinton kept track of "betrayals" in their many years of political life and how that list was used to evaluate actions on go-forward basis.  I don't believe this is in any way an isolated set of circumstances and we could easily identify similar situations with other political parties, countries and organizations.  "Might makes right" or "An eye for an eye" seem to be phrases - and realities - that continue to hold currency for many of us.  Too often it seems that we have to be in the right rather than working to make sure that the right things get done.  Too often we still believe that demonstrating compassion and forgiveness is too much of a leadership risk that will result in others exploiting our weakness.  Too often we react rather than lead.

Without doubt demonstrating and acting with compassion requires courage.  It takes courage to be vulnerable, to take a risk, to not exact retribution for real or perceived slights.  Let's be clear though, being compassionate doesn't mean that you have to have sympathy for another's position nor do you necessarily have to be a kind person.  Mandela certainly would not have sympathized with the position of his jailers nor would he have shirked from the kinds of change that South Africa had to go through in dismantling apartheid in order to be kind to his recent foes.  Sometimes hard things need to be done and said.  You have to sometimes be cruel to be kind.  And ultimately, change is and was necessary and good for all.

So what does it mean to be compassionate in your leadership role?  As Mandela's experience demonstrates, first and foremost you have to be aware of a committed to your own sense of self and your own sense of right and wrong.  You have to understand and be able to clearly articulate and stay true to a grand vision.  You have to be prepared to change and discard old notions, paradigms, and rules in order to achieve the greater good - particularly if you want to speak to more than one narrow constituency.  You have to be present with and aware of the thoughts, aspirations, concerns and challenges of those around you.  In order to do that as a leader you have to be prepared at all times to engage with those you lead - or could lead.  You have to be prepared to think with both your head and your heart, to be open to the thoughts and emotions of others in good and challenging times, and be willing to be open and honest with your own thoughts and feelings - to demonstrate your willingness to be courageously vulnerable.

Finally it's not enough to be compassionate in words.  As a leader you must ACT with compassion.  You will be evaluated by the courage of your convictions.  You may not win a Nobel Peace Prize, nor struggle for nearly three decades in a seemingly hopeless cause, but perhaps you still will leave your legacy as a compassionate leader that inspired others.
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Greg Hadubiak, MHSA, FACHE, CEC, PCC
TEC Canada Chair/Executive Coach/Senior Consultant
hadubiak@wmc.ca

Helping leaders realize their strengths and enabling organizations to achieve their potential through the application of my leadership experience and coaching skills. I act as a point of leverage for my clients. I AM their Force Multiplier.