GIVING Leadership with Grace

The dictionary defines grace as simple elegance or refinement of movement.  

Think about a ballerina moving ever so gracefully across a stage, or a prince or princess gracefully moving about their day inside or outside their castle.  They walk, talk, and live with grace.

Grace can also mean forGIVEness, or in other words, letting go of your emotions you feel when you’ve been wronged or even when you’ve been wrong or made a mistake.

Why is this important in leadership?

-Grace lifts people up

-Grace creates a safe and trusting atmosphere

-In the absence of grace and gracefulness, people feel as though their work is cheapened and less important.

“I GIVE grace because I so desperately need it.” 
~ Lisa Terkeurst, author

When we’re graceful with our actions, our words, our gestures, and our demeanor, the entire team feels lifted up. 

Moreover, in the absence of grace and a graceful demeanor, people feel their hard work and all their efforts are cheapened. They’ll begin looking for greener, more graceful pastures.

Google the word, “grace,” and you’ll discover several synonyms and descriptors that define the word and offer ingredients for leading with hospitality. 

You’ll see words such as:  a simple elegance, poise, finesse, agility, and nimbleness. The word “grace,” as a verb, has synonyms such as:  dignify, distinguish, honor, elevate, upgrade, and enhance.

Think about it. These words, sentiments, and most of all, feelings, are a collection of descriptors many of us would use to describe our ideal boss, leader, or mentor. 

Wouldn’t you rather follow someone with elegance, poise, finesse, and nimbleness over a person who’s tactless, unforGIVING, inept, crude, or downright rude?  

Wouldn’t you feel more compelled to go all in and crush it for a leader who day in and day out honors you, enhances your life, and elevates you, literally upgrading your career potential with every conversation and interaction?  

Of course, you would.  And so would the people on your team.

Here are three ways to activate grace and gracefulness as a leader, or even as a leader among your peers:

1 – Extend grace:  Generous explanations can save you from an otherwise downward spiral of frustration, worry, and perhaps worst of all, regret. When we come up with the most generous explanation for why others fall short, we guard against momentary flare-ups of pride, which can ruin relationships and teams. 

2 – Ask for and receive grace from others:  Remember, great leaders aren’t great as a result of their leadership-ness. They’re great because of their humanness. No one is perfect, not even great leaders. When you need more time, a second or third chance, and especially when you make a mistake, simply ask for a little extra grace. When you’re humble enough to ask your team, your own leaders, or your partners for grace, it doesn’t make you less of a leader. It makes you more human. 

3 – Be graceful. Graceful words, graceful actions, and graceful hearts create environments where people feel safe, both personally and professionally. When people feel safe, a sense of belonging replaces the awkward alternative. When people feel they belong, they feel important. When people feel important, they perform at their absolute best. When people perform at their absolute best, we’ve done our jobs as leaders. 

We’d love to hear your stories of how your friends, coworkers, students, or family members have helped you experience great leadership, or how you’ve taken it upon yourself to GIVE leadership to others. Share your stories on your favorite social media platform and use the hashtag #GiveHospitalityBook so we can see your post.

Have a great day, and never stop living, working, and loving from a place of GENEROSITY.