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…
Category: Ethical Thinking
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.
The Gut-Brain Axis (Ethical Questions)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
I am a long-time advocate of systems thinking. It has risen in importance as an increasing number of our greatest human challenges can't we understood or resolved without it.
Today, I'm taking a look at new findings on the human microbiome, which is known to impact the brain in important ways. You may have already seen the recent news about advances in our understanding of the Gut-Brain Axis.
Unethical Leadership: Selective Respect
By Linda Fisher Thornton
We've seen selective respect too often. Beyond harming the people who are disrespected, it also destroys trust, and leads to chaotic environments and fear-based cultures. Even though we've all seen selective respect in action, we may not have had the vocabulary to describe why it's wrong (beyond calling it mean or inappropriate). This week I'm digging in to those details.Â
The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 6)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
This series has explored 5 important spheres of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making.Â
This week I'm summing it up in a checklist that will help you apply all 5 to your daily choices. When you are making a key decision, run it through the checklist to be sure you have considered all 5 important dimensions.Â
The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 5)
By Linda Fisher Thornton While change is a constant reality, it doesn't always factor into leadership thinking. In Part 1 and Part 2 of this series, I explored the Depth of our thinking, and the importance of understanding Context. In Part 3…
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The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 4)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
Who we include in our ethical thinking, and how broadly we consider our responsibility to others are important elements of ethical leadership. In Part 1 of this series, I explored the Depth of our thinking, and in Part 2, I broke down issues related to understanding Context. In Part 3, I looked at Complexity. In Part 4, we'll dig into the importance of Inclusion.
The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 3)
Embracing Complexity is Part of Leadership
Complexity has become a way of life. To make ethical decisions, we must embrace it and incorporate it into our thinking process. That means digging in to issues until we understand their multiple dimensions, connections and contradictions. It means being intentional about decision making and avoiding making snap judgments.
The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 2)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
In Part 1 of this series I looked at the importance of Deep Thinking. In Part 2, we'll be considering the Context. No matter how much effort it takes to understand the context (whether we like it or not) we can't expect to make an ethical decision without it.Â
Understanding the Context
Without seeing the context - a broad and sweeping view of the issues we are discussing or trying to resolve - we are describing or trying to solve a SUBSET of the real issue. To use ethical thinking and decision-making, we must always remind ourselves that the SUBSET is not the whole.Â
The Complexity of Ethical Thinking and Decision Making (Part 1)
By Linda Fisher Thornton
When Thinking is Starved For Context and Complexity
Think about how easy it is to start using shallow breathing without being aware that we're doing it. This can happen when we're stressed or anxious, and it can impact our well-being. We may be unaware that we are using shallow breathing until someone notices we're turning pale and tells us to BREATHE.
When we use shallow thinking, that similarly impacts the "well-being" of our decision making, leading us to false conclusions and ethically problematic decisions. It's almost as if when we use shallow thinking, our decision making is getting less oxygen. We can medically treat people who are having trouble breathing. But what do we do about thinking that is starved for context and complexity?
Healthy Media Consumption
By Linda Fisher Thornton
I've blogged about how to spot fake news and variables complicating media ethics. Today I'll explore the characteristics healthy media consumption. Let's begin with a dose of healthy skepticism.Â
Healthy Skepticism
You can't believe everything you see. Photographs and videos that appear to be "proof" of a story may have been altered. Your best best is to choose your sources of information carefully so that you can reasonably be assured that what you are seeing and hearing is real.
On Patriotism, Nationalism, Globalism and Ethics
By Linda Fisher Thornton
I teach global leadership and applied ethics and my students often have questions about the differences between patriotism, nationalism and globalism. This post will explore the differences and their ethical implications.Â
5 Insights For the Class of 2019
By Linda Fisher Thornton
I have a special message for our 2019 graduates. It includes five important life insights that I wish someone had shared with me when I was a new graduate beginning the next chapter of my life.
The Willingness to Admit We’re Wrong
By Linda Fisher Thornton
We've all been wrong. It's only when we are willing to admit that we're wrong that we show what this John Templeton Foundation video describes as "intellectual humility." This video, titled "The Joy of Being Wrong" is a compelling visual portrayal of the process of being willing to admit we're wrong, and it describes the many personal and social benefits that result.
Unethical Thinking Leads To Unethical Leadership
By Linda Fisher Thornton As humans, we are flawed thinkers who fall victim to biases and traps. The biases and traps we so easily fall into reshape our thinking in ways that can lead us to make bad decisions.
Leading in Context 