Is empathy a strength or a weakness in leadership?

Must Read on Inclusive Leadership this weekend in The Guardian

👉 Jacinda Ardern, former Prime Minister of New Zealand talks to their editor-in-chief ahead of her biography to be published soon.

She strongly believes that governing with empathy is a sign of strength, in a world where many leaders do the opposite. I have talked often about the ability to listen to other's needs and surround yourself with people that bring diverse perspective to the table as a key competence for all inclusive leaders. That's even more true for leaders in politics, that should represent all citizens, not only their own fanbase.

Empathy is at the core of inclusive leadership.

Some snippets from the article:

✅ On blame as a recipe for polarisation

“Political leaders in moments of deep economic insecurity have two options. One is to acknowledge the environment that they’re in. We’re in a globalised world. We’re in an interconnected world. And we’re in a world of technological disruption. We need a policy prescription that acknowledges all of that. And those are often hard solutions. Hard, difficult to communicate, difficult to implement. But that’s what you’ve got to do. Or …”

She pauses. “You choose blame. Blame the other, blame the migrant, blame other countries, blame multilateral institutions, blame. But it does not fundamentally solve it. In fact, all that happens at the end is you have an othered group, and people who feel dissatisfied and angry and more entrenched.”

✅ On empathy as a force, not a weakness in politics

The “politics of empathy” might not be in vogue, but Ardern remains committed to it. Is it a strong enough weapon against authoritarianism? Elon Musk recently said that “the fundamental weakness of western civilisation is empathy”. 

Adern: “Well, in that environment, saying loudly and proudly that you believe in empathy and that you’ll govern in that way is an act of strength.”

✅ On staying true to yourself 

Throughout her memoir, Ardern reminds us he was always extremely sensitive and emotional, as well as a “chronic overthinker”. The book is dedicated to “the criers, worriers and huggers”; her thesis is that these people can make great leaders, too. 

For about a decade, Ardern worked diligently as an MP, learning the ropes in politics. In the book she tells an anecdote about the time she asked a fellow MP, known as a bruiser, how to toughen up. He begs her not to. “You feel things because you have empathy, because you care,” he told her. “The moment you change is the moment you’ll stop being good at your job.”

✅ On being open to different views as a force of inclusion

She always had progressive politics but believes being surrounded by people with different points of view helped her. “I have a very diverse family, lots of diverse views, and we haven’t lost any relationships, we’ve always talked.”

Read the full article on The Guardian here.

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Are you interested in how to drive more inclusive leadership in your organisation? Let's talk soon. Just book your free 1-to-1 in my calendar here.

Or discover my 10 lessons about inclusive workplaces learned in 10 years here.

Have a lovely day,

Elke Jeurissen

welcome@elkejeurissen.com