By Linda Fisher Thornton Organizations are facing multiple connected challenges. First, they need to prevent ethical mistakes in a high speed, highly transparent business environment. Second, they need to engage leaders in relevant ethical learning so that the principles "stick" and are used to handle real problems. Third, they need to help leaders apply ethical thinking so they don't just take "best practices" at face value.
Category: Context
Truth and Misinformation: How to Spot False Narratives (Part 2)
This is Part 2 in a Leading in Context blog series sharing information on how to spot misinformation and false narratives. In case you missed it, Part 1 explored truth and narrative. In Part 2, I will explore how data relates to the truth.
Truth and Misinformation: How to Spot False Narratives (Part 1)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
Sifting through mountains of information, people who want to do the right thing are finding it harder than ever to find the truth. We find ourselves dealing with the challenge of too much information and too little insight. This timely series will explore truth and misinformation. In each post, I will share a different way to spot misinformation and false narratives.
In Part 1, I will explore the concepts of truth and narrative.
Are Ethics and Morals Different?
With my background in Linguistics, I tend to view the divergence of ethics terms (that originally meant the same thing) as a distraction from what we need to know and do. Creating categories and subcategories of ethics may 'carve out new territory' or help us understand ethics at a deeper level, but it also puts more perceived distance between leaders and ethical choices.
Top Post Series of 2019: Leading in Context Blog
By Linda Fisher Thornton
The Top Post Series this year reflects the challenges of applying ethical thinking and decision making to complex problems.
This series answers the important question “How do we analyze and understanding the multiple connected variables in a changing context to make responsible choices? Today I’ll share a quote from each post in the series that will give you a quick overview of the topic.
A Message About Gifts
By Linda Fisher Thornton It has been a challenging year. This week I reflect on the progress being made (that may not show up in the news headlines) and how we can use our gifts in pursuit of good. “With…
The Voice of the (Un)Ethical Leader
By Linda Fisher Thornton There is great variation in how leaders "use their voice" in pursuit of their work. Some use it to engage and empower others, others use it to deflect unwanted observations or to create distance that isolates…
Why It’s Time to Stop Saying We’re “Better Than” Other People
It's time to stop telling leaders they will only succeed if they are "better than" the competition. It's time for business schools to stop telling students that they are "better than" their peers in the class or "better than" students in other programs. It's time for teachers and religious leaders to stop telling people they can be "better than" everyone else.
The End of Ethical Compartmentalization
By Linda Fisher Thornton
That Was Then
What people did in their spare time used to be private, allowing them to assume varying personas in their different roles. Someone could be buttoned up and ethical at work, but make really bad decisions elsewhere. People could choose to think about their lives as made up of separate roles that had separate rules.
How Are You Using Your Influence?
By Linda Fisher Thornton With leadership responsibility comes a certain amount of influence. We can impact how people think. We can advise them on the choices they make and invite them to follow our lead. “Leadership is not about titles,…
What is Duality?
By Linda Fisher Thornton What is Duality? What is duality? This is a tricky question, because the answer depends on your perspective and why you're asking. Each discipline answers the question from a different angle. This post samples the varying disciplinary perspectives on duality.
The Messages Micromanagement Sends
By Linda Fisher Thornton Micromanaging is not just another "leadership style." It harms people. When leaders micromanage, they send many negative messages to employees. Take a look at this list of more than 20 negative unspoken messages micromanagement sends to employees. Can you afford to let it happen in your organization?Â
WRIR “Inspire Indeed” Interview
By Linda Fisher Thornton Christa Motley, host of Inspire Indeed at WRIR radio, invited me to the station to talk about the journey to writing my book 7 Lenses and how it is helping people who want to understand ethical…
Rights, Responsibilities and Freedom
By Linda Fisher Thornton
While some people think of rights, responsibilities and freedom separately, in a compartmentalized way, I believe they cannot be separated. According to John Courtney Murray, freedom was always intended to be grounded in ethical values.
Respect, Interpreted Part 3
By Linda Fisher Thornton
What exactly does respect look like? It's a question that is difficult to answer, but we need an answer if we are going to be able to help our leadership teams learn how to show it, recognize it, and expect it from others. This week I'm sharing some work I've done that may help.Â
