037: “I care. Now what?”

Today’s reflection on uncovering hidden assumptions in our leadership worldview and embracing social leadership is brought to you by Father Justin Mathews, Executive Director of Reconciliation Services and host of The Social Leader podcast. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts or the Spotify app so you don’t miss an episode:

After the events of 2020 -  the economic and mental health impacts of the global pandemic, political unrest, brutal racial inequity, and so many other events - leaders were moved to act. Fortune 1000 companies committed billions to racial-equity initiatives, CEOs wrote statements, companies hired DEI officers, diversity workshops and HR coaches multiplied exponentially … All important responses. Their perspectives jarred and eyes opened to societal injustices, many found themselves asking, “I care. Now what?” Leadership has perhaps never been more important, more vital, in our lifetime than right now. People have never been more dependent on leaders to help us find our way and make meaning of our times.  

However, In the wake of our evolving corporate consciousness another problem has become evident - a leadership gap; one that is holding us back from accomplishing the change we know we need to make. In this blog I unpack how we can begin the journey to close the gap between our passion and our social action by uncovering a hidden false assumption in our leadership worldview and becoming social leaders.  

A Leadership Gap

I work with hundreds of accomplished business leaders each year and most of them at some point tell me they want to make a difference but they don’t know where to begin. Or they have tried but don’t feel adequately equipped to contribute to deep change. They are overwhelmed by the magnitude of community issues and mostly, they don’t see how their daily work in the business world can contribute to solving the social problems that burden their heart. Because of this gap between social passion and social action some of our leaders greatest talents are untapped and the strength of their organizations are not being harnessed to help solve our urgent community problems. 

Even for the most passionate leader the closer we stare at the fine print of a social problem the blurrier our role in the solution becomes. 

Let me give a real world example of the leadership gap I’m speaking about. Recently, I graduated from an executive Leadership development program. In this program we were exposed to serious civic and social challenges our city is facing and challenged to engage to help solve them. But there wasn’t a clear answer for how to help. As my colleagues and I were finishing the program there was a consistent theme from many people I spoke with. They wished there was more that they could do than serve on boards or volunteer episodically. The exposure they received in the program had stirred up their social passion but in the day to day of their corporate jobs there wasn’t a clear path for meaningful social action. What they wanted was a transformational leadership model where they knew that their daily work made an impact and had a higher purpose.  

Examining Our Leadership Worldview

So with so many people wanting to help why is there such a gap between passion and social action? I think it has everything to do with our leadership worldview. 

All of us have been, are, or will be in a leadership role in some area of our life. But we don’t often stop to think about our leadership worldview. Our worldview shapes all we are and do as leaders. How you lead and what you believe go hand in hand because our thoughts determine our lives. Our worldview shapes our thoughts and our thoughts precede and influence our actions. Then our actions affect our life and those around us. That is why our leadership worldview has to be examined. If you do not think you can make a positive impact through your daily work you won’t make one. If you aren’t prepared or have limiting beliefs and biases that are off target, you will miss the mark.

For example, we may want to hire high demand talent from historically disinvested African American neighborhoods with high unemployment. But if we also struggle with racially biased corporate culture then we will struggle to recruit and retain a diverse workforce at all. Creating jobs isn't enough. Our worldview affects our actions which in turn affects the company and the community. 

Here’s another example. We may want to improve employee engagement and send our teams out to volunteer in the community to improve community health. But if we are poorly educated about how to care for employees’ mental health at work and do not recognize the impact of trauma in the communities we volunteer in, then we will not apply our resources to addressing root causes of issues. Volunteering isn’t enough to move the needle. Our worldview affects our actions which in turn affects the company and the community. 

Have you thought about your leadership worldview? Who is shaping that worldview? All of us grow up observing various leaders that shape our worldview - some good, some harmful. Have you thought about how you view your daily work and if you see a connection to the social problems that you are passionate about? 

These questions about worldview are hard to answer - it takes time and intention.  But if we want to learn to lead with greater social impact we have to first assess our leadership worldview and look for hidden assumptions and limiting beliefs. 

Hidden Assumptions and a False Dichotomy

I think there is at least one common hidden assumption hidden within the normative leadership worldview. That is that there is a bold line between our work priorities and our social passions or priorities. The assumption is that these two things must exist in different parts and at different times in our lives - unless, of course, you work for a nonprofit, so the hidden assumption says. This was the hidden assumption in my first example where my friends were not sure how their social passion could or should overlap with their daily work and life. 

While we are encouraged to “bring our whole selves to work” now, business leaders still see the work of solving social issues as largely the domain of the nonprofit sector or a dedicated Corporate Social Responsibility and Diversity officers. This is because business sees itself primarily as a passive funder of social solutions, not an innovator or potential operator of social solutions. This is the outcome of the hidden assumption of the normative, business as usual, leadership worldview. 

And while the notion of corporate social responsibility and of social entrepreneurship are slowly eroding this limiting belief in our leadership worldview, most of us are still largely unaware of this leadership assumption and how it is harming our companies and communities. 

That worldview is how we get stuck thinking that all we can do is serve on boards and write checks at annual fundraising dinners.

But what if the dichotomy between daily work and leading with greater social impact is fundamentally false? What if our unexamined leadership worldview is holding us back from our greatest potential as leaders? What if it's limiting our ROI and stifling creativity as companies? What if this worldview is even contributing to the ecosystem that sustains community problems? 

The Solution? Social Leadership

What if our leadership worldview evolved and we came to believe that it wasn’t only government, social enterprises and nonprofits that were to meaningfully generate social change? What if regular business leaders started to think of themselves as social leaders?  Can you imagine if all of our leaders and businesses in this community were working to close the gap, to embrace social leadership and leading with greater impact inside their company in order to impact the community outside of their company?

I define social leadership as the journey to close the gap between our social passion and our social action in our daily work and lives. The Social Leadership model encapsulates the worldview and skills required to be an impactful leader in an evolving business market that puts increasing value on the social exchange between communities, consumers and businesses. Social leaders in the business world understand that they are uniquely positioned to foster social change from within their leadership lane, not just from their excess time or charity. 

It is time for each of us to examine our leadership worldview and uncover old hidden assumptions. We must root out the false dichotomy between our work priorities and our social priorities. Given all we face in these times we must strive to close the gap between our social passion and our social action and increase our sense of higher purpose at work. In doing so we will transform our work into social action whenever possible. In doing so we will not only move the needle on to solving our community’s most pressing problems, but we will invest our work and life with greater meaning. I believe that if more leaders and businesses work to lead with greater social impact that the net effect will be greater than starting 100 more nonprofits in our community! Now is the time. We all must become Social Leaders.

Start your journey now, subscribe to The Social Leader on Apple Podcasts or the Spotify app to learn from experienced social leaders. And visit TheSocialLeader.org to learn more about our e-course that will guide you through every step you must take to fully integrate your social passion into action.

Fr. Justin Mathews is the Executive Director of Reconciliation Services. He holds a BBA in Business from Belmont University (TN), a Masters in Divinity from St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. In 2020, Fr. Mathews was awarded the “Ace Award” from the KC Chamber of Commerce as a champion of diversity and inclusion and Reconciliation Services received the “Excellence In Impact” Award from Nonprofit Connect.