Delaney and Associates Inc.
  • Home
  • Story
    • Our Story
    • Meet the Team
    • Careers
  • Services
    • Engagement
      • Online Engagement
    • Facilitation
    • Communications
    • Training
  • Specialties
    • Health
    • Federal Government
    • Local and Provincial Government
    • Renewable Energy and Environment
  • Training
    • Overview
    • Schedule At A Glance
    • Introducing the Promise of Engagement
    • Foundations for Authentic Engagement
    • Facilitating Engagement Plans
    • Producing Virtual Meetings
    • Communicating for Engagement
    • Evaluating Engagement
    • Designing Engagement Surveys
    • IAP2 Training
    • Register for IAP2 Courses
    • Fundamentals of P2 and Engagement
    • Designing P2 and Engagement
    • Applying Methods
    • Custom Training
    • Online Courses
    • Meet Your Trainers
  • Courses
    • IAP2 Techniques for Effective Public Participation
    • IAP2 Planning for Effective Public Participation
  • Blog + Newsletter
    • Blog
    • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • Search
  • Menu Menu

Loving to be Loved

November 16, 2015/in General/by Jessica Delaney

I’d like to suggest that just about all of us want to be liked and respected as professionals. There’s nothing wrong with this; in fact it can be a good thing if it promotes ethical, values-based decisions and behaviours, particularly amongst leaders and decision makers. But there is a fine line, and recently we have witnessed an increasing desire amongst leaders and decision makers to be loved.

What does this look like in the context of engagement?

A leader who loves to be loved…

  1. 1. Is highly influenced by the last person they connected with;
  2. 2. Wants people to be happy, even if that means not making a difficult decision; and
  3. 3. Is willing to undo good work or process for the vocal minority.

 

Leadership isn’t easy. It can feel isolating and lonely. It can mean being the face of difficult decisions and, ultimately, it can mean having staff, stakeholders, shareholders or others really disagree with you – heck, they might not like you.

The strength, however, of a leader is not in their desire to be loved, but in their desire to achieve the vision and mission of their organization and to lead with clarity and purpose. It’s a big ask, but the alternative is that leaders will be highly influenced by those who make them feel loved, or good, and more willing to ignore those who challenge, question or push for difficult decision making.

What is a leader to do?

To keep in check one’s desire to be loved, or even to question whether one is being influenced by a minority, ask yourself:

  1. 1. Does the course correction or course of action I’m going to take align with my personal or organizational values?
  2. 2. Is there new information, beyond emotion, which we had not considered?
  3. 3. Am I making a decision so that I or my boss will look good (or is this the right thing to do)?

 

Keeping oneself in check is critical for both good process and good decision making.

Tags: community engagement, decision-making, dialogue, leadership, municipalities, public engagement, public relations
Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Tumblr
  • Share on Vk
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
https://www.rmdelaney.com/wp-content/uploads/FullLogo2.png 0 0 Jessica Delaney https://www.rmdelaney.com/wp-content/uploads/FullLogo2.png Jessica Delaney2015-11-16 12:22:112016-04-04 10:57:28Loving to be Loved
You might also like
Three Big Themes We’re Seeing Right Now
#CPRS2015
Want to Join Delaney + Associates Team? We Are Hiring!
Jennifer Miller Joins Delaney + Associates Team
Are You Really Listening?
New St. Paul’s: Planning a Hospital With Patients at the Center

Search Blog Posts

Followon TwitterSubscribeto RSS Feed

Latest posts

  • Communicating for EngagementMarch 24, 2023 - 8:57 am
  • The Luck of the Engaging IrishMarch 17, 2023 - 8:56 am
  • March Break and Government Fiscal: Competing Forces for Our AttentionMarch 13, 2023 - 8:40 am

Categories

  • 20th Anniversary
  • 25th Anniversary
  • Careers
  • City Conversations
  • Community
  • D+A News
  • Engagement Planning
  • Engagement Techniques
  • Facilitation
  • Forecast
  • General
  • Training

Archives

27 Years of Engagement Excellence… Helping governments, business and NGOs build relationships with their say help build relationships with their communities since 1996.

Latest News

  • Communicating for EngagementMarch 24, 2023 - 8:57 am
  • The Luck of the Engaging IrishMarch 17, 2023 - 8:56 am
  • March Break and Government Fiscal: Competing Forces for Our AttentionMarch 13, 2023 - 8:40 am
  • Designing Engagement SurveysMarch 7, 2023 - 8:12 am

IAP2 Training Schedule

  • Upcoming iap2 Courses

© 2023 DELANEY AND ASSOCIATES INC. All rights reserved
Including Diverse Voices in the ConversationThree Reasons to Engage Youth
Scroll to top