Servant Leadership in the Era of The Great Resignation

Each year, I partner with my dear friend and New York Times Bestselling Author, Tommy Spaulding, to host leadership retreats for executive leaders. Our goal is to inspire these leaders to learn and live the principles of Heart-Led, servant leadership and do so using their heart and emotional intelligence. Over the past few weeks, Tommy and I worked with nearly 60 leaders from for-profit and nonprofit organizations across the US and Mexico to go deep on themselves so that they can show up more fully human and emotionally intelligent for their organizations.

I know what you might be thinking. This sounds like your typical boring corporate retreat where you’re holed up in a windowless conference room designed in the 1980’s in a hotel next to an airport. That we made grown adults participate in goofy activities or do trust falls to help build teamwork and camaraderie. An event where people care more about watered-down happy hour drinks and being out of the office than the program content.

Not this retreat. We don’t work with just any leaders.

We curate a room full of leaders who are driven, ambitious, and engaged. Successful individuals leading organizations and teams who are hungry to learn. But most of all, we find the leaders who care more about their teams and employees than themselves. Humble, receptive, and curious leaders who show up ready to learn how to know and do better on behalf of those who lead. We take them outside of their element, and often outside of their comfort zone, to create breakthrough opportunities for them to truly learn how to be emotionally intelligent, servant leaders.

While I can’t reveal much about the content of the retreat (IYKYK, and if you don’t and want an invite for next year, let me know!) one thing I can share is my belief that there is a way out of “The Great Resignation.”

Massively disruptive shifts in the workforce continue, with a significant contributor being employees abruptly leaving their company, often without another job lined up. Requests for mental health services are up more than 70% before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 60% of employees report feeling the impact of burnout.

The average leader today primarily focuses on the bottom line, on outputs, productivity, and outcomes. They ask me questions like, “How do I encourage people to come back to the office?” or “Would changing to a 4-day work week really improve company profits?” and “We survey our people and the results seem OK, so we don’t need to worry, right?”

This is why I’m allergic to the average leader.

Because in the face of mass exodus of talent from organizations, the third wave of the pandemic (i.e. the mental health crisis we’re in), and an unstable economy, the average leaders are asking the wrong questions. The right questions are being asked by Heart-Led, emotionally intelligent leaders who know that it’s people who drive business results, not process. The humans in the organization, not the widgets you make or service you provide are what keep customers coming back.

These leaders ask questions like, “How can I better support my team?” and “What else can I do to make people feel valued and appreciated?” or “What are the signs that someone is approaching (or already experiencing) burnout?” Servant leaders seek answers to support their team and ensure they are thriving - not just surviving - in their role. Their goal is to lift others up and create an environment where everyone can grow, thrive, and produce amazing results.

There is no silver bullet solution for solving the current workplace crisis. But one thing I know is that the leaders I’m privileged to work with on these retreats will be the ones who will lead their company or nonprofit out of the chaos. By serving employees first, leading from the heart, and bringing a new level of emotional intelligence to the workplace, they will be the reason The Great Resignation slows, and hopefully one day ends.