Learning how to run the world
One revolutionary act of kindness at a time
In the 1st century BC, Publilius Syrus said,
“You can accomplish by kindness what you cannot by force.”
An insight that should have become a self-evident truth over the last 20 centuries, and yet it is still as startling in its honesty today as I am sure it was back then.
Ultimately the people who truly run the world, do so through countless acts of kindness.
Recently I was reminded of a situation I had to manage a few years back with a dysfunctional team. Comprised of 15 people the team was a classic example of invisible toxicity.
On the surface it appeared that all was well, members regularly professed a deep commitment to organisational purpose, but the statistics told a different story.
High levels of unplanned absenteeism, history of delivering work late and frequent turnover of new staff members.
Scratching beneath these statistics and it became clear that the team was riddled with cliques of in and out groups, ignorant influencers who were able to infect the dominant discourse with false consciousness and engagement and bullies who enforced toxic values and norms, promising punitive action for…
