When your child was born, what was your first instinct? (Right after you wept openly or freaked out that you have a little human to take care of.) My wife and I immediately had the natural instinct to love, care, serve and support the needs of this life that had been entrusted into our care. We didn't make a choice in this; the inclination to serve as a parent came naturally. Even when our children are challenged or challenging in some way, we as parents love them and work to create an environment where they can thrive.
What does any of this have to do with leading an organization? Everything! It's time to question why we leave who we are as Mom or Dad at home and turn into our "work self" when we walk through the door of our jobs.
We also leave behind that loving, caring, serving nature that is so instinctual to us as parents. We temper the natural instinct to love to the point where it is watered down and unusable.
Yet our teams, employees, peers and bosses are people, just like our kids. They aren't a steel pipe that pumps out work. They thrive when they're nurtured and loved, just like our kids.
It's NOT just love for love's sake. You're not detached from the results. Just as you know that the love you invest in your kids will increase the chance for a successful and fulfilling life, you can expect that the love you invest as a leader will lead to a productive, fulfilling and wildly successful business.
The following three practices will tap into your loving, serving nature and transform how you show up at work:
