True caring is about you, not me

Colleagues,

​5. True caring is about you, not me

I used to try and help people by getting them to think like me. 

Why? 

I guess I thought I had all the answers. 

The problem with this form of “caring” is that my agenda drove the interactions and I only created space for people to grow in the direction I wanted them to grow. In the spring of 2004, I read Milton Mayeroff’s short book On Caring and it changed my leadership forever.

Myeroff stated that if I really cared about someone, then I would take the time to know and understand them and support them in the direction they determined they needed to go. 

This was a profound shift. 

My actions became more about the other person, and less about me. 

Leading is not taking people in a direction, it is providing the support to help them grow in the direction that they need.

Intention: Think about your own growth. Do you know the direction in which you need to grow? Is there any reason to think other people can’t figure out how they need to grow?

Cheers!

Frederick