Leadership Is Love

I accidentally stumbled upon a pattern some time back. It really surprised me at first.

But it makes so much sense!

Love is at the centre of leadership.

I saw this idea expressed time and time again, from top leadership authorities.

Here are a few examples:

“… you can love people without leading them, but you cannot lead people without loving them.” – John Maxwell, Developing The Leader Within You.

“And what sustains the leader? From what source comes the leader’s courage? The answer is love. Leaders are in love—in love with
… the people who do the work,
… with what their organizations produce ,
… and with their customers.”
– James Kouzes and Barry Posner, The Leadership Challenge

“Many businesspeople consider “love” to be a personal matter, certainly nothing that belongs in the corporation, yet love forms the foundation of all human interactions.
Without love, there is no teamwork;
without love, there is no leadership;
without love, there is no real commitment to customer service.
I am not referring to the romantic love we hear so much about; I am talking about a different kind of love, agape.”
– Fred Kofman, Conscious Business: How To Build Value Through Values 

“If the word love scares you, then use passion, commitment, compassion, servant leadership, purpose-driven, mission-driven, or your choice of any similar word or phrase, because at the core these are all forms of love … love is simply an unselfish and genuine concern for the good of others.
So when we lead from the heart—when we lead with love—we care deeply about serving others, about selflessness, about doing the right thing even when it’s difficult, about developing empathy and demonstrating generosity, about all those ideals that may seem “soft” but, in fact, allow us to live and lead more powerfully.”
– Tommy Spaulding, The Heart-Led Leader

What do you think? Are they right, or is the core of leadership something else?

What role does love play in your leadership or business?

I’d love to hear. Let me know!

About Me

I am passionate about activating human potential – helping make the world a better place.

I do what I can to improve the thinking and tools we have available in our industry and in the world.

I work with smart, creative leaders – transformation leaders such as coaches and consultants, thought leaders such as speakers and authors, and change agents and difference-makers –  to help them make a bigger difference through their work.

I help these leaders sharpen their ideas and messages to cut through and be heard.

And I work with strategy so that have clarity, the right plan, and the right action steps to get to where they want to get to.

You can learn more about me from my home page www.lauchlanmackinnon.com 

Connect For Updates

Like this article? Would you like to get updates about new articles and subscriber-only content?

Subscribe for regular updates from me at newideasandinsights.com. You can opt out at any time.

You can find me on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauchlanmackinnon/