One of our favorite quotes is from Rollo May because he points out that courage isn't just another virtue ... it's the foundation upon which all virtues and values are built.
And for Managers to be excellent, they must muster this courage on a regular basis.
Here is Rollo’s quote:
“Courage is not a virtue or value among other personal values like love or fidelity. It is the foundation that underlies and gives reality to all other virtues and personal values. Without courage our love pales into mere dependency. Without Courage our fidelity becomes conformism.
The word courage comes from the same stem as the French word couer, meaning “heart”. Thus just as one’s heart, by pumping blood to one’s arms, legs, and brain enables all the other physical organs to function, so courage makes possible all the psychological virtues. Without courage other values wither away into mere facsimiles of virtue.”
~ Rollo May from his book The Courage to Create
It’s a wonderful quote, so now what do we do with it? We offer a pragmatic article from Gallup that helps take courage to the next level for any manager looking to improve.
Click here for the Gallup article: “Do Your Managers Lack Courage?”
In the Gallup article, Ryan Pendell states that "managers are 50% more likely to strongly agree that they have too much to do. And some managers may feel like their job is impossible -- trying to please the people above them and below them at the same time."
He concludes with “Being in management means dealing with messy problems and making tough calls. But to truly resolve issues, managers need shared conviction around your organization's values. Hard conversations are never fun or easy, but they are more likely to result in positive outcomes when we have the motivation to do the right thing.”
Gallup “Do Your Managers Lack Courage?”
Article Overview:
Managers who lack courage produce burned-out teams.
Low-courage managers undermine both their leadership and their teams.
Organizations can boost courage by reshaping the "us vs. them" mentality.
For the rest of the Gallup article, you can click the link below: