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Radical or incremental? Structured or unstructured? Tradition or future-centricity? Control or freedom? People or processes? High integrity politicians? Trump or Biden? Everywhere you look these days, you find seeming paradoxes and inexorable dilemmas. Some of these will be relevant to navigate if you are in a leadership position. Ethical leaders who excel in their trade know how to surf the crest of the paradoxical wave and do so to their advantage — and here is why.
Whether or not you give this conscious thought, paradoxes are all-pervasive and in today’s socio-political climate it seems necessary to take sides on subjects such as wokeism, international conflicts, DEI (think Musk versus Lemon), technology (immersive technology and its staggering influence on interpersonal behavior), and global politics (China versus the West, Russia versus NATO, Palestine versus Israel, Houthi movement versus Saudi Arabia). For example, some people harshly criticized British Prime Minister Sunak for inviting China to the international AI Safety Summit in the UK in 2023; others welcomed this strategic and symbolic move as a sign to cooperate despite political differences.
This is where ethical leadership clearly enters the stage. Ethical leaders must be able to cognitively handle such paradoxes.
Today’s business climate places leaders face to face with complex dilemmas — such as valuing and leveraging the needs and skills of four very different generations, the staggering digitalization of work, ever shorter innovation cycles, the war for talent, the scarcity of resources, and more. Essentially, every organization finds itself in some sort of quandary that calls for resolution. Yet each decision carries a plethora of complexities with which companies and societies alike must tackle.
During the pandemic, societies, citizens, and organizations alike displayed a disparity of perspectives — either you were for or against the jab; either you listened to news outlets for or against government-issued regulations; either you were for or against the “stay at home” campaign — with all the consequence these entailed. In both camps, most people took extreme positions.
Successfully managing difficult dilemmas requires strong measures of moral courage and critical reasoning. The leaders who resort to parroting the narrative dominating the discourse on subjects such as AI, agility, diversity, or a welcoming culture problematic issues do little to reach a firm resolution for the organizations they lead, their stakeholders, and the broader community.
Paradox-savvy leaders today must often navigate the polarities of achieving business goals while empowering teams to explore their own solutions. Similarly, they grapple with expending time and effort to raise the next generation of innovative minds while simultaneously relying heavily on seasoned staff to ensure production performance. Invariably, these leaders must remain focused on metrics whilst being supportive of employees. Facing paradoxical contradictions in their decision-making while maintaining the motivation and trust from team members calls for a principled, ethical approach.
On a side note: Many people in the Western world practice Hindu yoga or quote the Buddha, but don’t actually appreciate the most basic noble truths. For instance, Buddhism gifts us with a living legacy: The presence of suffering, the exploration of the cause of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. One element of Buddhism is not to take extreme positions, but to think and act peacefully in dichotomies so as to end the suffering. This is precisely what ethical leaders understand — how to find middle ground through a maze of contradictions in order to do good and be successful spiritually, economically, and as leaders of fellow human beings.
Individuals who are best in class when striking a balance between paradoxical choices and navigating contradictions rely on these key ethical leadership traits:
Self-reduction: This skill involves taking oneself out of the equation. Essentially, recognizing we are all part of the problem, there isn’t friend or foe, no black or white. These are oversimplifications that are universally and culturally determined, and don’t serve the ethically inclined paradox-savvy leader when tackling challenges.
Self-complexity: The capacity acknowledges and utilizes the various skills and mindsets that are required by the different roles within the organization and integrate them in a paradox-savvy and coherent whole.
Advocate for preservation of dignity: Ethical leaders acknowledge the traditions and universalities integral to our humanity, such as dignity and the value of all life, that must remain intact. These collective ideals serve as their North Star.
Retain emotional equanimity: Self-control, composure and mindful humility are trademarks of ethical leaders. Despite complex dilemmas, they have the capacity to weigh solutions from a critical perspective.
The many complexities impacting today’s leaders have significant consequences for enabling their organizations to survive into the future. Leaders who approach difficult challenges without parroting one-sided narratives or only considering their own self-interest will contribute to building ethical cultures within their organizations and beyond.
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Claas Florian Engelke provides consulting services in the fields of leadership advisory, assessment, and development. He invites clients to question themselves in order to foster incessant learning and aspire to be the best versions of themselves. Richard B. Swegan is an author and the founder and principal consultant of ARCH Performance. With a background in human resources and safety, Rick provides consulting to a variety of organizations on the developmental needs of potential leaders. Their new book, The Practice of Ethical Leadership – Insights from Psychology and Business in Building an Ethical Bottom Line (Routledge, March 28, 2024), offers effective suggestions for developing ethical leaders. Learn more at ethicalbottomline.com.
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