Leadership in Turbulent Times, Part 1.
What follows are some excerps from Margaret J. Wheatley essay titled “Leadership In Turbulent Times Is Spiritual”
Here are some principles that describe essential perspectives, beliefs, and work for leaders now. Each of these comes from spiritual thinking and traditions.
Life is uncertain. Life never stops teaching us about change. As leaders, hopefully we can be gentle guides and coaches so that people discover their own life's wisdom.
Life is cyclical. […] we pass through different moods, we live through seasons, we have times of rich harvests and times of bleak winter. Life uses cycles to create newness.
Meaning is what motivates people. […] it is very important that the leader create time for people to remember why they're doing this work. What were we hoping to accomplish when we started this? Who are we serving by doing this work?
Service brings us joy. The joy and meaning of service is found in every spiritual tradition. […] "All happiness in the world comes from serving others; all sorrow in the world comes from acting selfishly."
Courage comes from our hearts. When we are deeply affected, when our hearts open to an issue or person, courage pours from hearts. […] leaders need to […] to tell stories that open other peoples' hearts.
We are interconnected to all life. […] we act on this truth when we're willing to notice how a decision might affect others, when we try and think systemically, when we're willing to look down the road and notice how, at this moment, we might be affecting future generations.
We can rely on human goodness. I believe in these dark times that we can only rely on the hope, resiliency, and love that is found in the human spirit.
We need peace of mind. […] we need to find ways to help people work from a place of inner peace, even in the midst of turmoil. Frantic activity and fear only take us deeper into chaos.
Here are some principles that describe essential perspectives, beliefs, and work for leaders now. Each of these comes from spiritual thinking and traditions.
Life is uncertain. Life never stops teaching us about change. As leaders, hopefully we can be gentle guides and coaches so that people discover their own life's wisdom.
Life is cyclical. […] we pass through different moods, we live through seasons, we have times of rich harvests and times of bleak winter. Life uses cycles to create newness.
Meaning is what motivates people. […] it is very important that the leader create time for people to remember why they're doing this work. What were we hoping to accomplish when we started this? Who are we serving by doing this work?
Service brings us joy. The joy and meaning of service is found in every spiritual tradition. […] "All happiness in the world comes from serving others; all sorrow in the world comes from acting selfishly."
Courage comes from our hearts. When we are deeply affected, when our hearts open to an issue or person, courage pours from hearts. […] leaders need to […] to tell stories that open other peoples' hearts.
We are interconnected to all life. […] we act on this truth when we're willing to notice how a decision might affect others, when we try and think systemically, when we're willing to look down the road and notice how, at this moment, we might be affecting future generations.
We can rely on human goodness. I believe in these dark times that we can only rely on the hope, resiliency, and love that is found in the human spirit.
We need peace of mind. […] we need to find ways to help people work from a place of inner peace, even in the midst of turmoil. Frantic activity and fear only take us deeper into chaos.
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