The economics of decency: a powerful paradigm for leadership?
Mark Twain once said, “Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see.”
I was recently at my daughter's first marathon and we were standing about a mile from the finish line to cheer her on.
Watching the runners, spread out by this time, we witnessed a woman runner start to stumble then nearly fall when a bystander ran out and caught her.
My friend, an accomplished athlete, said: “she’s bonking, her salt is used up and her muscles are quitting.”
The bystander was still holding her up when two other runners came by, stopped and caught her under her arms and kept her on her feet and moving.
After my daughter came by we were able to cross the field to see her finish.
We also watched the two runners helping bring the struggling runner in, her toes dragging as they brought her across the finish line, costing the two runners a finish in under 4 hours.
It was an understated inspiring moment. A simple act of decency, the kind that I suspect go unnoticed all the time. It is in our nature to care for the well-being of one another, we are after all pack animals.
In the world of business... profit, advancement, proving oneself, etc., can often blind us to bringing decency into the equation. It is our intention to demonstrate such thinking is short-sighted!
There is profit in decency.
Since self-interest is usually the basis for making personal change, we are making the case for the economics of decency.
I’m pondering what it would take to start a movement for decency in this country and in our culture.
I’d like to believe the foundational building blocks are there. I’m certain the economics are there and represent the tools for sustaining a strong economy.
If this thinking represents some possibility for you and your organization, I invite you to read our weekly fundamentals distributions.
We call them Fundamentals because they are the fundamental behaviors we practice in our organization; however, they could easily be called the behaviors of decency.
Check them out, check us out, we are on to something.
Until next time,
Cheers,
