“Can you imagine what this man could have been had somebody loved him?”
- Henry Kissinger (1923 – 2023 ), speaking of his boss, President Richard M. Nixon
“Love, exciting, and new,” to quote the theme from The Love Boat — and the topic of two Diffs in less than a week. Weird.
So, in a business blog, Heston?
Yep. For those of you too young to remember Kissinger, Nixon and “their time,” it’s worth some time in the library, on Amazon getting a book or two, or just on The Goog, learnin’.
To be kind, Nixon was paranoid. He was so paranoid he might have been a pair of noid. (I know, I know…) He was wicked smart and saw the big picture, but ultimately failed and almost went to prison because – according to Kissinger- he operated as a man who never knew love. Never knowing it, he also rarely (if ever) gave it.
Love brings out the best in people. Over time, I’ve had to fire team members, even though I loved them – in a business-appropriate sense. Because love brings out the best in people, and our job, as leaders, is to bring out the best in people.
Trust is built on love. Empathy is built on love. If our teams believe that we trust them and understand them and their roles (and how they function in those roles), we can have the tough conversation. We can hold them to a higher standard. We can pour into them and almost have parental pride in their growth. If they feel loved, we can ask more of them, expect more of them, and give them honest feedback when they fail to live up to those expectations.
Even if you don’t remember Kissinger and Nixon, hold this thought in the context of Pat in accounting, Chris in sales, and every other team member. Love them first, and when they move on, the best of them moves on, just as it will have come out under your watch.
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