The native Gaelic language is a special one. It has many words to describe the same thing, such as the 32 words to describe a ‘field’ in Irish, depending on the situation, location, or use.
It also provides unexpected insight into ancient customs, such as the origin of the Gaelic name for Dublin—Baile Átha Cliath (pronounced Ball-yaw Aw-haw Clee-ya). Cliath describes the framework of woven branches used in original bridges over Dublin’s River Liffey. And the related term clíatha fis describes a bed of woven hawthorn branches ancient druids are said to have used to absorb the wisdom of the sacred hawthorn. From this came the saying ar a chliathaibh fis, which means someone has gone to great lengths to access information.¹
High performing leaders must also go to great lengths to answer today’s challenges. Those challenges are so many and complex that, as in Gaelic, it’s inadequate to capture them in just one word.
Purpose, meaning, equity, inclusion, environmental, social, governance, privacy, attrition, retention, energy, ethics … the list of potential words goes on.
Leaders and their organisations must embark on a journey to discover the answers to these most pressing challenges—by expanding awareness, discovering higher purpose and empowering those around them through an energising vision. And all this should be accompanied by—and will, in fact, lead to—higher performance and powerful results. This is critical to be sustainable.
And we know these often considered ‘softer’ aspects are vital for the workforce of the future:
60% of employees desire meaningful purpose, but 88% of people feel that the organisation they work for doesn’t care for them²
Does ‘compassion’ cover it?
More compassionate leaders are needed, but even the word ‘compassion’ doesn’t cover the depth required of today’s leaders. One word does: Atosú. Not because it’s our name, but because it’s the Gaelic word for restart. And because restarting allows us to see things differently and do things in a better way. At Atosú, we do things differently.
And while we don’t quite recommend lying in a bed of sacred hawthorn, we do help leaders take the necessary time to reflect on their most pressing issues and apply a creative methodology to solve them.
Atosú helps leaders expand their awareness to energise themselves and those around them. Discover here how Atosú can help empower organisations from the bottom up with our flagship programme ‘Leadership—Why Bother?’
References:
¹ Thirty-Two Words for Field: Lost Words of the Irish Landscape by Manchán Magan
² According to research presented in The Economics of Higher Purpose by Professors Robert E. Quinn and Anjan V. Thakor
