Mettā: Pali symbol for benevolence, loving-kindness, friendliness,
good will, and active interest in others
A qualitative inquiry into love as an imperative character strength for 21st century leadership
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This site is designed to be a source of information and inspiration for anyone curious to learn more
about my doctoral research on love as a critical leadership character strength.
Why Love and Leadership?
"Work is love made visible.
And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste,
it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple
and take alms of those who work with joy."
Khalil Gibran, poet and author of The Prophet
Inarguably, the world is experiencing a Leadership crisis
in all organizational domains from academia to business to politics.
In mainstream culture as well as scholarly literature, love is often described as an emotion or condition of the heart that one falls in and out of. As an alternative, love can also be defined as a virtuous behavioral trait
that is informed by a personal code of excellence.
It's high time for leaders to be held to higher levels of accountability for not only the outcomes they achieve,
but also how they achieve them. It's time for a radical transformation.
It's time for Love to take center stage in Leadership.
Love, in this study, is defined as a character strength that can be broadened and built with mindful intention. It is the degree to which a leader values close relationships, build that closeness in a genuine way, and understand, as well as practice the reciprocity of extending love and willingness to accept love from others.
The term "mettā” comes from the northern India Pali language and means loving-kindness,
goodwill, and positive energy towards others.
Thus, this Mettā Leadership study is an exploration of how engaging in mindfulness-based practices to develop
love as a character strength might inform one's leadership identity, capacity and capability.
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