Contrary to the beliefs of these so-called leaders, kindness is not a liability—it is the keystone that holds the arch of a successful team together. In their narrow view, kindness is equated with a lack of authority, a reluctance to discipline, a weakness to be exploited. They fail to see that kindness in leadership is strength tempered with wisdom, courage blended with compassion. They do not understand that kindness is the firm hand that guides, not the trembling one that fears to lift others up.
Social Blindness and Moral Bankruptcy in the Corporate Ladder
Climbing the corporate ladder with blinders on, these leaders ignore the human element in their pursuit of results. They are socially blind and morally bankrupt, recognizing value only in numbers and outcomes, not in people and processes. In their world, employees are disposable, interchangeable parts in a relentless machine of productivity. The concept of ‘team’ is but a hollow term used to push individuals into giving more for less.
The Unhealed Leader: A Path of Destruction
The corridors of power too often echo with the footsteps of the unhealed—leaders who have not addressed their inner turmoil and instead unleash it upon those they lead. Their personal grievances become public policy within their realms, their unresolved issues a smog that chokes innovation and well-being. An unhealed leader views their team through a distorted lens, one that colors every interaction with the hues of their own discontent.
The Judgment of Kindness as Incompetence
To judge kindness as incompetence is to admit one’s own inadequacy in understanding what true strength is. It reveals a vulnerability in the critic, a fear that perhaps their brashness is not as effective as they have convinced themselves it is. The judgment is a self-portrait of the critic, not an accurate depiction of the kind leader.
Kindness requires control, patience, and an unwavering commitment to the good of the group over the ego of the individual.
The true folly is the stubborn adherence to a toxic archetype of leadership that prizes bravado over empathy, severity over understanding. It’s time to recognize these red flags for what they are—signs of a leader unfit to lead in today’s world, where the strength of a team lies in its spirit of cooperation, supported by the pillars of respect, empathy, and yes, kindness.
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