
Skill can’t compensate for a stingy heart.
Advantage grows when it’s given.
Generosity multiplies influence.
7 Practices of Generous Leadership
- Courageously give yourself first. Generosity is about who you are.
- Slow down. You can’t be generous and frantic at the same time.
- Show up to bring advantage to others.
- Stand up for others.
- Forget barter. Don’t give to get. Give to give.
- Earn to give. Don’t give it all away. Earn more so you can give more. Define enough.
- Feel it. An open hand that doesn’t touch you is nice, not remarkable.
Bonus: Honor open-handed leaders.
Generosity Requires Four Strengths
- Humility: Acknowledge you didn’t get here alone.
- Courage: Resolve to give when scarcity scares you.
- Compassion: Commitment to seeing the person, not simply the resource.
- Connection: Appreciate that their success is your success.
Challenge
Half-hearted liberality is barter. No-strings-attached lifts you above the pack.
Some take advantage of liberality. Be wise. But be more generous than wise.
Final Word
Success requires skill.
Greatness requires generosity.
Let what comes to you flow through you.
How might leaders practice open-handed leadership?
What Makes you Great and Much More
Read: Givers and Takers by Adam Grant
—
Previously Published on leadershipfreak
***
***
At The Good Men Project, we are glad to share selected work from Leadership Freak, a publication focused on leadership, workplace relationships, communication, and the everyday habits that shape how people work together. We do not believe the workplace is a separate sphere from the rest of life. The way people lead, listen, praise, correct, and share power at work affects families, mental health, dignity, and the wider culture people carry home with them at the end of the day.
That is one reason this kind of writing matters to us. Reimagining masculinity also means reimagining work: what we reward, what we normalize, what we ask people to sacrifice, and whether leadership is measured by control or by care. We are interested in workplaces where people are treated equitably, where leadership is more humane and less performative, and where success does not automatically require giving away your health, your relationships, or your sense of security. Advice on leadership may seem small compared with those larger goals, but culture often changes through repeated daily behavior. How people treat one another in ordinary moments matters. It matters a lot.
If you believe in the work we are doing here at The Good Men Project, please join us as a Premium Member today.
All Premium Members get to view The Good Men Project with NO ADS.
Need more info? A complete list of benefits is here.
There are many ways to support The Good Men Project’s mission. You can join us on Substack, become a Premium Member, and follow our broader conversations about work, relationships, leadership, identity, and how to build a more humane culture. We also work with authors, agencies, brands, and sponsors through our author amplification and paid guest post programs. For more information, email [email protected].
—
Photo credit: unsplash

