By Linda Fisher Thornton To celebrate 7 Lenses going into its second printing (big news!), this is the first post in a special series focused on Why Ethical Thinking Matters. I'm hoping the strategies shared in this series will give you a fresh perspective on your talent development plans for 2018. Ethical thinking drives ethical choices and behavior. Marcus Aurelius said "Our life is what our thoughts make it." According to Buddha, "We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world." I believe that leadership development efforts must address the values-based thinking behind good leadership, or it will not lead to good leadership. If we just teach people skills, without upgrading their thinking, we are not preparing them for success in the real world.
Tag: Ethical Leadership Development
Top 10 Posts 2017: Leading in Context Blog
By Linda Fisher Thornton Of the 52 posts published on the Leading in Context Blog in 2017, these 10 were the most popular. See if you notice a theme that connects these topics that readers accessed most frequently:
Rethinking “Smart” Leadership in an Ethical Context
By Linda Fisher Thornton This week I'm looking at what it means to be a "smart" leader through the 7 Lenses (introduced in the book 7 Lenses) to get the full ethical context. Take note: You can do this with any idea, concept or project to better understand the ethical nuances.
400th Post: The Journey to Meaning (Growth Required)
By Linda Fisher Thornton I didn't set out to become a top blogger or thought leader. I set out to answer a question. In the process of answering the question, I started a journey that has changed my life. There's no fairy tale story here (is there ever?). It wasn't all by conscious choice, and it wasn't always a logical progression. It happened the way that life happens to all of us.
Do Good Things Come to Those Who Wait?
By Linda Fisher Thornton I don't particularly like the quote "Good things come to those who wait." This quote, attributed to British author Violet Fane (Mary M. Singleton) in 1892, may be true but it leaves out important parts of the story. Good things may come to those who wait, but only after certain important conditions have been met:
Trust Energizes Organizations
By Linda Fisher Thornton How transformational is the power of trust in organizations? It increases capacity and improves performance. It improves work satisfaction and quality of life:
Leaders, Don’t You Care? (9 Red Flags That Tell Employees You Don’t)
By Linda Fisher Thornton One of the hallmark requirements of ethical leadership is that we CARE about people, about their success, and about creating a positive work environment. If leaders fail to demonstrate that they care, that harms the culture. The 9 behaviors below are red flags for employees - pointing out that a leader doesn't care.
What Does it Mean to “Be a Leader?”
By Linda Fisher Thornton Leadership is not about being "in charge" or standing "at the front of the room" or "exercising personal power." Authentic ethical leadership flips that paradigm.
5 Insights Into Leadership Development Future (Part 3)
By Linda Fisher Thornton This is the third installment in a series "5 Insights Into Leadership Development Future" Each post in this series will address a trend in leadership development and offer tangible actions for helping leaders. In case you missed them, here are the previous posts:
The Future of “Leadership” (Do We Need a New Word For It?)
By Linda Fisher Thornton While we are experiencing many global challenges, there is also a gradual global push toward better leadership.
What Does “Good Leadership” Mean?
By Linda Fisher Thornton We need to talk openly with leaders about what "good leadership" means. Without those conversations, they might think it means making the sales numbers and meeting aggressive work deadlines, being knowledgeable when people come to them for help, or staying within budget. Those things are all important, but "good leadership" requires much more.
350th Post: A Zoom Lens Won’t Help You See “Good Leadership”
By Linda Fisher Thornton Leadership is multifaceted, but leadership books are not often written about that. Many use a "zoom lens" approach to take you very close to one aspect of leadership. This close-up view can be helpful for fine-tuning our leadership skills, but then we may begin to think that this close-up view is all there is to good leadership.
Leaders Influence First By Who They Are
Linda Fisher Thornton If you are in the Richmond, Virginia area, please join me for a Book Talk on April 7th at the Tuckahoe Library.
Detachment and Ethics Don’t Mix
By Linda Fisher Thornton Ethics and detachment don't mix well. In fact, combining high ethical expectations with an aloof stance can lead to trouble.
Being Thankful is a Virtue
By Linda Fisher Thornton Cicero's quote reminds us that before we can act on the important virtues that create a just society, we must see the world with a thankful heart.
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