POLITICAL CORRECTNESS OR VIRTUOUSNESS

NEW BOOK GIVEAWAY!!

20 copies available!!

(Book giveaway is closed on this post.)

Leave a comment on this guest post by Kim Cameron to become eligible for one of 20 complimentary copies of his new book, Positively Energizing Leadership: Virtuous Actions and Relationships That Create High Performance.

Deadline for eligibility is 08/07/2021. International winners will receive electronic versions.

Image of a fork in the road. Should you go this way or that way?

If you had a choice, would you work in a culture focused on political correctness and conformity to a political ideology, or would you work in a culture characterized by virtuousness as the summum bonum?

Politically correct or virtuous:

In cultures focused on political correctness, taking offense and being on the lookout for transgressions are common.

Groups tend to be categorized as having superiority and privilege or as experiencing oppression and subordination. Conformity to an acceptable point of view is a dominating value. Negative energy predominates. 

In cultures prioritizing virtuousness, people seek opportunities to contribute and to uplift and positively energize others.

Individuals’ motives tend toward the demonstration of compassion and charity, humility and gratitude, unconditional love and acceptance, and trustworthiness. The key objectives are to help each individual flourish and contribute unselfishly to the welfare of the whole.

Positively energizing leadership is grounded in virtuousness, or demonstrating the best of the human condition. Demonstrating virtuousness unleashes the inherent potential of all human beings toward positive, life-giving energy. 

So, if a leader was charged with changing an organization from one mired in conflict, disaffection, disengagement, and accusations into one full of positive energy and spectacular performance, what would be the prescription?  

Actions to build positive cultures:

  • Give all employees gratitude journals.
  • Assign employees to positively embarrass someone each day—that is, compliment a colleague in front of someone who cares.
  • Create a gratitude wall or good news wall to record celebrations.
  • Redefine mistakes as learning opportunities.
  • Write letters to the families of employees, describing the contributions the employee makes to the organization.
  • Use employees to mentor, coach, or teach others.

A statement, often attributed to John Quincy Adams, captures the essence of positively energizing leadership: “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become more, you are a [positively energizing] leader.”

Leave a comment below for an opportunity to win one of 20 copies of Kim’s new book.

Kim Cameron is professor of management and organizations at the Stephen M. Ross School of Business, co-founder of the Center for Positive Organizations, and professor of higher education in the School of Education, all at the University of Michigan. His book, Positively Energizing Leadership: Virtuous Actions and Relationships That Create High Performance (Berrett-Koehler Publishers), released August 2021.