When good companies succeed, the world becomes a better place.
The world gets better for two reasons: first, because of the business that gets done; second, because of the way it gets done.
Owners win, customers win, community wins, suppliers win, the environment wins.
Leaders of good companies are inspired by visions that are greater than themselves — visions that reflect goodness and meaning that are beyond business, but that can be created, in part, through business.
But even as strong leaders see visions beyond themselves, they also know that their place in the world is very much personal. Their best work is aligned not only with their universal values and visions, but also with their individual strengths and preferences. Bishop Desmond Tutu and President Nelson Mandela both work for justice, but in very different ways.
From an old Hasidic tale:
Rabbi Zusya said, “In the coming world, they will not ask me: ‘Why were you not Moses?’ They will ask me: ‘Why were you not Zusya?’”
Do you know your vision? Do your values guide the work you do and the way you lead? Do you work in ways that truly make you happy? And do you bring your strengths to work, so that you can make the biggest difference with the greatest ease? If you answer “yes” on all counts — thank you and congratulations. We are all the better for it. But if not, are you ready to change? The change is both scary and exciting. The transition is well worth it.
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quoted in The Spirituality of Imperfection: Storytelling and the Search for Meaning, Kurtz and Ketcham
