I believe in the principle: “Leading is caring.”

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A missionary is willing to sacrifice himself in order to help other people usually with the purpose of contributing to an overall well-being. In my view of leadership, a leader should behave more like a missionary because it generates a sustainable future even after the leader has left the organization.

Some leaders act more like mercenaries, using resources and people to their limits. We can’t ignore the fact that this approach produces great results and can be viewed as a product of efficiency, but in the long term it can be disastrous.

Mercenaries tend to focus on themselves and to and adjust their strategy to the best offer and according to each situation, while missionaries look beyond and towards the future. They build something that can survive and grow sustainably and even without their own presence or input.

Modern leadership is more focused on the how things are done rather than what people achieve.

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Many companies are changing their practices and their strategies to include social responsibility and in some cases even compromising some short term revenues. These companies understand that if they continue to strive for short term results they will sooner or later face difficulties because some startup will find a way to achieve the same results but in a way that is more sustainable and can grow without too much investment.