Leadership should not be weaponized or used to oppress people. This is what decolonizing leadership means. Leadership is about giving power back to the people. Leadership involves power sharing. Leadership is shedding power to pour our compassionate hearts into others. The only authentic authority that grounds great leadership is compassion. Leading from a heart of compassion is not weakness. Authoritarian leaders are weak because they fear losing power by being vulnerable and showing care. Some leaders believe the only way to wield power is through force and coercion. Consequently, they cannot resist any opportunity to prove their privileges and advantages over their followers. Such leaders are preoccupied with highlighting their privileges and reminding their followers of the substantial gap between them. They employ manipulation, intimidation, exploitation, and siphoning as tools to execute their agenda. Such leaders cannot imagine serving others; they are intoxicated by power and consumed by their self-importance.
It
is time to decenter oppressive leadership tactics and reclaim servant
leadership. Servant leaders do not distinguish themselves from their followers.
They roll up their sleeves to work alongside their team and remind everyone
that they are all human. Servant leaders lead with empathy and compassion. With empathy, they understand the suffering
of others, and with compassion, they can reach out to everyone. Empathy is the ability to connect with and
accommodate all members of your team. Empathy does not segregate or
discriminate. Empathy does not silence or erase anyone's experiences or
feelings. Empathy has ears to hear what
everyone on the team has to say. Empathy has eyes that recognize and appreciate
everyone's efforts without being judgmental. Leaders who embody empathy
provide their team with a strong dose of encouragement and motivation for peak
performance. Leaders with empathy correct with love, intending to nurture
rather than destroy the spirit of initiative and creativity. Leaders with empathy
view everyone on the team as a potential leader. Thus, they nurture talent and
provide opportunities for growth and development. Servant leaders who lead with
empathy do not see their followers as competitors but rather as co-leaders.
