Who Cares

Leadership

May 29

“The more you're aware of yourself and how you can manage all of the many things that are on the table, then you can understand where you want to be putting your energies and your focus.” - Dr. Gloria Miele

Happy Tuesday!

When thinking about the topic for this week’s podcast where we dive into Empathetic Leadership, for whatever reason my mind opened up to the memory of my fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Harris.

Now I will tell you back in the day not many thought of Mrs. Harris as empathetic, in fact quite the opposite.

You see Mrs. Harris’s reputation preceded her as one of the meanest teachers in our whole Catholic elementary school. Which was saying a lot because a few of the nuns had rulers that let’s just say they used for much more than measuring.

Yet what I came to know, as she became my teacher in the 5th Grade, was that Mrs. Harris fascinated me. And that her “meanness as some described her was her toughness to get her students to learn and see past her major disability. This was because Mrs. Harris was in a wheelchair having suffered from Polio and she could not walk having lost the use of her legs.

So, she gave a tough exterior and used devices such as the chalkboard erasers that she threw at students to get their attention when she could not make it to the back of the classroom.

There was a special gleam in her eye when she was teaching that I became fond of even when one of those erasers was aimed directly at me. Even when she made me sit under her desk for being the class clown and was aiming her erasers at me every time, I popped my head out to the laughter of my classmates. I smile today thinking about those moments.

Through it all she taught geography in a way I can remember clearly, as she pointed to the places around the globe from her pull down maps and extra long pointer stick. From her I discovered that there was a big world out there outside of our little town in Southern California.

She taught us to be proficient in creating outlines to help us with learning and absorbing information. We did outlines over and over and over again learning our roman numbers along the way. And perhaps most importantly I learned that people with disabilities could do and be so much more than I ever imagined.

Of course, the word empathy wasn’t a word used very often back then. And, there would be some who would be pressed to say that Mrs. Harris was an empathetic leader. However, she taught at our school for many years (they even built a wheelchair ramp for her) and created quite a reputation for herself. She was unforgettable in the lives of so many children because at the end of the day, she truly cared about her students.

Listen Now

This week on the podcast we talk about the importance of being an empathetic leader with my friend and colleague Dr. Gloria Miele.

In our discussion we look at how each of us are leaders in one form or another. The key factor is to be able to see what we are bringing to the table. How and why we care, and who it is that we actually care about.

It is those leaders that cared about us along our way that helped to contribute to our being the person we are today. Who was your teacher, boss, parent, grandparent, coach, and perhaps even friend who showed they cared about you? The ones that made the greatest difference.

Words and actions can last a lifetime – most especially when someone cares.

As we wrap up the month of May here in a couple of days along comes June and the season of summer. Wishing you many special moments that will light up your life.