Leading With Love

As business becomes more automated, power more concentrated, and the forces of competition and consumption seem to dominate our lives, we are in danger of losing what it is to be human. Work for many can be a soulless activity, creating feelings of disempowerment, alienation, and depression. Learning to lead with love is a counterforce to the instrumentalisation of the person. This book presents original research based on leaders who were nominated by their people for leading with love. It shows how they learned to lead with love for the benefit of themselves, their organisations, and their people. It shows that leading with love is something that is practised by leaders who are more emotionally, morally, and spiritually mature. Leading with love is a sign of psychological maturity, whilst leading with fear is a sign of hindered emotional and spiritual development. Based on this research, this book presents a simple framework to help leaders who wish to develop their psychological maturity and apply practices which will enable them to successfully lead with love.

Leadership has for too long been treated as a function and not as a relationship. Zina Sutch and Patrick Malone argue that successful leadership must be based on love (altruism and empathy) and laughter (positive emotions and joy). Science tells us that humans are deeply wired for empathy and compassion and that our emotional selves help us make better decisions and motivate others. However, the tactics we use to train leaders bear little reflection of these advancements; we're still creating competent but emotionally distant leaders who “manage human assets” and lead by setting goals, deadlines, and deliverables. Zina Sutch and Patrick Malone hope to flip a light switch and illuminate, above all else, that leadership begins with heart and soul. Too many training programs reduce leadership to an equation, matrix, or acronym. But leadership is a relationship. It's one human helping another. The most successful leaders show they genuinely care about their employees and are, well, fun. It's just like any relationship. In seven succinct chapters, the authors show that people lead best when they tap into their genetically driven human nature to love and nurture, connect and trust. Leading with love and laughter offers powerful dividends: tighter teams, stronger performance, improved morale, greater trust, more creativity, and even better health. While Sutch and Malone cite the science and offer examples, tips, and practices, their larger purpose is to reintroduce the warmth of human interaction and emotion as the foundation of what leadership is all about.

"In today's knowledge-, wisdom-, and information-based world, the challenge facing leaders and organizations is to be able to obtain employee commitment and to apply that dedication to constant improvement and change. In a world where technology is rapidly improving and knowledge is increasing exponentially in virtually every field, the ability to adapt and to innovate is essential to organization success and individual development. This book looks at continuous improvement at the individual, group, organizational, and societal levels and identifies commonalities and keys to success. It adopts a 'transformative' perspective towards leadership, management philosophy, duties owed, and the obligation to constantly change. The authors/editors have written extensively about the need for leaders and organizations to refine their approach to change and improvement and this book combines their insights into one consolidated explanation"--

Colleen Barrett began her career as an executive secretary, yet Southwest Airlines' founder chose her to succeed him as president. When asked why, he said, "Because she knows how to love people to success." --

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Brené Brown has taught us what it means to dare greatly, rise strong, and brave the wilderness. Now, based on new research conducted with leaders, change makers, and culture shifters, she’s showing us how to put those ideas into practice so we can step up and lead. Don’t miss the five-part HBO Max docuseries Brené Brown: Atlas of the Heart! NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY BLOOMBERG Leadership is not about titles, status, and wielding power. A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas, and has the courage to develop that potential. When we dare to lead, we don’t pretend to have the right answers; we stay curious and ask the right questions. We don’t see power as finite and hoard it; we know that power becomes infinite when we share it with others. We don’t avoid difficult conversations and situations; we lean into vulnerability when it’s necessary to do good work. But daring leadership in a culture defined by scarcity, fear, and uncertainty requires skill-building around traits that are deeply and uniquely human. The irony is that we’re choosing not to invest in developing the hearts and minds of leaders at the exact same time as we’re scrambling to figure out what we have to offer that machines and AI can’t do better and faster. What can we do better? Empathy, connection, and courage, to start. Four-time #1 New York Times bestselling author Brené Brown has spent the past two decades studying the emotions and experiences that give meaning to our lives, and the past seven years working with transformative leaders and teams spanning the globe. She found that leaders in organizations ranging from small entrepreneurial startups and family-owned businesses to nonprofits, civic organizations, and Fortune 50 companies all ask the same question: How do you cultivate braver, more daring leaders, and how do you embed the value of courage in your culture? In this new book, Brown uses research, stories, and examples to answer these questions in the no-BS style that millions of readers have come to expect and love. Brown writes, “One of the most important findings of my career is that daring leadership is a collection of four skill sets that are 100 percent teachable, observable, and measurable. It’s learning and unlearning that requires brave work, tough conversations, and showing up with your whole heart. Easy? No. Because choosing courage over comfort is not always our default. Worth it? Always. We want to be brave with our lives and our work. It’s why we’re here.” Whether you’ve read Daring Greatly and Rising Strong or you’re new to Brené Brown’s work, this book is for anyone who wants to step up and into brave leadership.

When the world is burning with anger, divisiveness, and fear, this book of inspiring quotes selected by the editors of Parallax Press is a still, small voice in the storm that will bring peace of mind to the reader. With delicate illustrations by artist Maude White, this book speaks to the vulnerability and courage of holding space for the loving, connected, and more beautiful world our hearts know is possible. This book is gift, solace, and inspiration for idealists, progressives, and anyone fighting the good fight. In the long tradition of spiritual activists from Martin Luther King Jr and Thich Nhat Hanh to new and less known voices, this book of 100 quotes draws from a range of contemplative traditions and offers wisdom and nourishment for anyone engaged in working for a more compassionate world. Quotes include those by Thich Nhat Hanh, Sister Chan Khong, Joanna Macy, Sulak Sivaraksa, and others, on themes of awareness, idealism, kindness, self-compassion, truth-telling, transformation, resilience, and love.

Put your flawed foot forward. Pick up most leadership books and you’ll find strategies for leveraging your power and minimizing your areas of weakness. But think about the leaders whose names have gone down in history. Most of them were so messed up that, if they were looking for work today, no executive placement service would give them the time of day. God’s criteria for choosing leaders runs counter to the conventional wisdom. Our culture equates strength with effectiveness, but God favors leaders who know the value of brokenness. In Leading With a Limp, you’ll discover what makes flawed leaders so successful. They’re not preoccupied with protecting their image, they are undaunted by chaos and complexity, they are ready to risk failure in moving an organization from what is to what should be. God chooses leaders who aren’t deceived by the myths of power and control, but who realize that God’s power is found in brokenness. If you are a leader–or if you have been making excuses to avoid leading–find out how you can take full advantage of your weakness. A limping leader is the person God uses to accomplish amazing things. To go deeper, check out the Leading With a Limp Workbook.