Marcel Schwantes and guest, Heather Hanson Wickman, are aligned on their messages of how practical love works to serve people well and help organizations to thrive and profit. They expand on the principles of “love in action” through the guest’s compelling 2018 book, The Evolved Executive, whose sub-title inspired the creation of the Love in Action podcast.  

Show-Notes:

Optimism Vs. Pessimism; Is there room for both?
So often leaders and individuals feel the only way to present feelings is in the form of optimism. But are they honoring their real, true feelings? Cohost Robb Holman, references the Harvard Health article, An Outlook Better Than Optimism?, and discusses the importance of being aware of your feelings and mindset especially when grief or pessimistic associated feelings are necessary. “We need to acknowledge and embrace how we really feel and in the midst of that there is beauty, there’s intimacy, power.” [5:18]

Suffering
Heather shares the very real and painful elements of her own suffering, and the point in which the tension became too much, something had to give. Marcel points out that many people believe since the pandemic suffering has decreased with an increased level of equity and awareness. And while the work landscape has changed and shifted, Heather believes the suffering has not decreased but rather changed and presented in different ways. “Care, Candor, Connection, and Change…I don’t think these have really shifted based on the pandemic, if anything when we think about connection maybe we’re even at a place that’s worse.” [28:18]

The Evolved Executive
The title of Heather Hanson Wickman’s book is The Evolved Executive but who is the Evolved Executive? “An Evolved Executive is the individual that really draws into the idea of servant leadership, that we are here are as stewards of the people that are working for us and the organization that we’re a part of” [30:00] Heather defines this person with this scientific definition but also an as she says “artistic definition”, in which there is the idea where the individual as a deep drive to continue to look inward and constantly change and be better.

Operating from love NOT fear
“Fear is really allusive in terms of the ways in which it shows up at work… the hoarding of information, the secrecy, the gossip… those are the things that get in the way of us stepping into the space of love”[32:04] Heather’s top signs of fear in the workplace are Gossip, Secrecy, Not Speaking the Truth, and ‘Yes Boss’. Most of the time people aren't even aware they are doing these things, these are just the way they’ve been taught. Moving to a space of love starts with a place of deep self-awareness as a leader in how you are creating or allowing fear in the workplace.

Deeper Level of Consciousness
Deeper Consciousness, it’s not metaphysical mumbo-jumbo. Heather explains that as someone (like an ‘Evolved Executive’) who is evolving, raising their awareness, and constantly looking at how they are serving others will naturally expand into their consciousness.“We are all mirroring and magnifying different parts of who we are…as we raise our awareness we begin to see differently.” [44:31]

Mentioned in this episode:
Robb Holman
An outlook better than optimism? - Harvard Health
Untethered
Heather Hanson Wickman on LinkedIn
[email protected] 

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