Grace by John Baldoni

Author:John Baldoni
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Indigo River Publishing
Published: 2019-07-31T19:46:12+00:00

Acting on behalf of another is acting with the intention of doing something for the greater good.

Action: What the Leaders Say

Grace is given without preconditions and so it falls to those who receive it to put it to good use.

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Action “means to use one’s power or influence to help others,” says Christine Porath. “Lift others up in some way through smaller, big acts, but ideally to go out of your way to see that someone is taken care of or is included.” Exclusion is inherent in our society so for Christine looking to include those on the margins, those outside the mainstream, or even outside the workstream, requires an action on our part.

Part of acting is learning how to give advice in the spirit of helping rather than dictating. Have a conversation. Listen to what someone needs, advises Wayne Baker. Offer your interpretation of what you heard and wait for a response or clarification. “And then I think that you also have to ask for permission to help if it hasn’t been requested. You know, that just instead of offering up I could say, “Look, I have some ideas, would you like to hear them?”

Acting with grace requires a sense of respect for others. Tim Sanders poses a hypothetical situation. “If you and I worked together, and you came to me and complained to me about this jerk in the service department, and I went straight to the big boss—because the big boss loves me—and since I’m the top salesperson, I got the jerk in trouble, then I’ve acted on behalf of my co-worker, but not necessarily with grace.”

Alan Mulally, as a former CEO of two major corporations, knows all about acting with the right intentions. “It’s about the people, talented people, working together,” says Alan. “The job for leaders is to provide that clarity [of purpose] for everybody and to have a plan that delivers profitable growth and clarifies every element of it. Overcommunicate the clarity. Reinforce the clarity with all of our management and human resources’ practices and love them up. Love them up.” And such an approach is self-reinforcing. According to Alan, “once you agree to the principles, practices, and the management system, you agree to working together. You’re making a commitment to each other and yourself that you’re going to operate this way.”

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Think about these questions:

What must you do before you act?

Why is action essential to effective leadership?

How will you discipline yourself to distinguish between impulse (sudden urge) and action (thoughtful intention)?

What is one action you can take to do something positive for a colleague?

What does it mean to you to be a “moral leader”?

How can you demonstrate civility in your life?

As a leader, what are you doing to prepare for the future?

How can you act with civility to someone who has treated you disrespectfully?

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