This series on the attributes of inspirational leaders began with having a Meaningful Purpose, a compelling “Why” on behalf of which you are leading. One that draws people to follow and go the extra mile.
Genuine Caring
Inspirational leaders genuinely care about people – those who work for them and the clients, customers and citizens they serve. According to one respondent, inspirational leaders are “humanitarians”. They put others’ success first and invest themselves in making that success a reality.
How?
They elevate people’s strengths. They catch you doing what you do well. They notice. They comment. They wisely match you with assignments where your strengths are needed. They help you shine. Even when offering critique, they have your best interest at heart and you feel it. They are working to help you be a better version of yourself.
Does genuinely caring get in the way of delivering tough messages, removing someone from a role in which they aren’t succeeding?
Not necessarily.
Tom Menino, Boston’s former mayor, had a big heart. He served for 20 successive years and left office with an 80% approval rating. He loved the city and its people. In his biography, Mayor for a New America, published shortly before Mayor Menino died, he wrote about the heart of his leadership and his performance expectations. He did not side-step holding people accountable. He gave them the time and space to succeed, and he held their feet to the fire when they didn’t measure up.
The Heart of Inspirational Leadership
Menino credits his first successful election as Mayor to the values “passed on from my parents.”
“Treat everyone with respect, help others. To this inheritance I added sympathy with the struggles of ordinary Americans. I think people wanted a ready heart in their mayor. Regardless, they got one.”
“You have to have the right values and the right heart – compassion.”
Purpose. Vision. Heart.
He wanted the city of Boston to become, for its citizens, what it was for him growing up. A place where people enjoyed safe secure neighborhoods and access to resources that would help them fulfill their dreams and aspirations.
He loved serving that purpose
“They elected me. If I’m able to help people …that’s the best part of the job. . . . The way their lives go, my life goes.”
Tom Menino often showed up, first and foremost, as a person who cared.
Caring first. Title second.
Menino recounts:
On his way to a Dorchester Christmas party, Louis Brown, a fifteen -year-old straight-A student who dreamed of being the first black president, was killed in a gunfight between gangs. He was carrying a Secret Santa gift for a friend in Teens Against Gang Violence, the group holding the party, when he was shot in the head and dropped to the pavement, still holding the gift. I drove out to Louis’s house. Walking up the stairs, I remember thinking, What can I say? I rang the doorbell and Louis’s mother, Tina Chéry, came down to see who it was. “I’m here to help,” I said, and sat with her that night, listening to her stories about Louis. Consoling the loved ones of murdered children is part of a mayor’s job in gun-saturated America.
Menino brought his heart to the people who worked for him as well. After the Boston Marathon bombings, hundreds of police officers worked around the clock until they captured the suspects. And when that happened, Menino got on the police scanner to say, “The people of Boston are proud of you. Especially the mayor of Boston. I’m very proud of what you’ve done.”
Silence followed his words.
Then the scanner crackled and a voice said something I won’t forget : “We did it for you, boss.”
When leaders express pride in their people, their people do more to earn that pride.
Setting Expectations – Holding People Accountable
Could he also be tough? Absolutely.
“The public expects great performance from me all the time. I expect it from my people at least some of the time.”
The Mayor, the man with a big heart who genuinely cared, also held people accountable.
Move ahead to Attribute 3
Menino’s authbiography, a worthwhile read by a leader, about leadership, is available on you-know-where.