Take a Stand to Gain Trust with Those You Lead
I am not afraid of Cancel Culture.
I know that this might be a bit of a tough topic for you, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. It’s about the role of faith, spirituality, and God in your life, career, and business. If this is not your jam, you can stop reading right here.
For a very long time, I subscribed to the belief that we need to keep our spiritual preferences separate from conversations in general settings. Do you know the saying, “don’t talk about religion or politics” if you want to remain friends? It’s true. I’ve seen many friendships, business relationships, and family relationships disintegrate because of these two topics.
Why is it so hard for people to respect and understand someone else’s beliefs and choices without taking them personally or feeling attacked?
One reason is because they are afraid to be judged. They do not want to experience rejection. They feel superior or inferior and quite frankly, do not want to explain why they believe what they believe.
I remember having a conversation with someone who held totally different viewpoints from me. We disagreed on many things in theory, even down to people who wear dreadlocks in their hair. It was so funny when he spoke about people who wore locs in such a negative way, and after he was finished, I said in a whisper close to his face…” you do know that I am wearing locs, right?”. He looked at me dead in the face and said no you are not. I smiled and had to bend my head down to show him that indeed, I did.
Two days later, he called and apologized. I told him no respect was lost, but he said he was embarrassed for himself because if he was calling himself a leader, and realized how good of a friendship we had that he never even noticed that I wore dreadlocks in my hair, he needed to do better with his bias.
Indeed.
Some people will say, I should cut him off because he is ignorant. But I don’t think so. I have biases too. We all do. When we connect at a human level; however, and recognize that we are humans first, and focus on the love of and for humanity, bias can fall away.
We start with friendship based on a mutual respect for human life.
I believe in God. I grew up in a family that did. I didn’t and still don’t fully subscribe to everything that I was taught because I had to discover the journey for myself. I don’t believe in religious activity just for activity’s sake. Recruiting people to my faith is not my style. I know this is the best way for me, but it doesn’t mean it is the best way for you.
This is what I mean when I say, as business leaders, you need to take a stand.
When people ask me, how is it that I am able to get along with so many people who have different beliefs from me, it is because I focus on CONNECTION vs CONVERSION.
Read that part again.
When people ask me, how is it that I am able to get along with so many people who have different beliefs from me, it is because I focus on CONNECTION vs CONVERSION.
The minute you start to focus on getting someone to see your way of life or thinking as RIGHT– you are wrong. You shut people down. You become that annoying self-righteous person that everyone wants to run away from. Uggh just writing about these people gives me the shudders.
My own father went on his journey of what I call being an atheist, then a humanist and now as someone in his 70s, recently professed what he believes as the existence of God in his life. I didn’t have anything to do with that. I connected with him at every stage of his journey. He loves me and he knows I love him whether we agree on beliefs or not.
If you are a person of faith, and you believe God to be present in your life, don’t push, or pull. Just be. You will be known by your actions and your fruit. You are welcome here.
And if you are not a person of faith, you too, do not push or pull. Just be. You are also welcomed here.
As much as we think we separate ourselves at work and home, we don’t. We take our whole selves everywhere we go. Some parts are hidden, and others are more visible. If you are ready to fully express the leader in you, take a stand.
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