On Patriotism, Nationalism, Globalism and Ethics

By Linda Fisher Thornton

I teach global leadership and applied ethics and my students often have questions about the differences between patriotism, nationalism and globalism. This post will explore the differences and their ethical implications. 

Ethical Leaders Understand the Context

By Linda Fisher Thornton

In a previous post, I addressed some of the risks of not taking time to THINK before making decisions. Today, I want to explore why it is so important for leaders to understand the CONTEXT before they make decisions. 

Unethical Leadership: Selective Inclusion

By Linda Fisher Thornton

I previously wrote about the problem of selective respect and today I’ll address it’s evil twin. It has been happening right in front of us and has been amplified by social media – leaders speaking from a perspective of selective inclusion. This week, I’m sharing a collection of posts that explain the importance of full inclusion and how to recognize examples that stray from it.

What is Unethical Leadership?

By Linda Fisher Thornton

This week I’m sharing posts that clearly describe what unethical leadership looks like, and caution readers about the risks of allowing it to continue. While I have always blogged about proactive ethical leadership, my posts on unethical leadership continue to be some of the most popular, so I know you’re looking for answers.

Seeing The Facets Of Facts (Part 2)

By Linda Fisher Thornton

Building on last week’s post about Seeing the Facets of Facts, this week I’m digging into the dangers of “Partialized Facts.” When I say “Partialized Facts” I refer to treating one perspective on an issue (that is only part of the picture) as the whole truth. I have seen it happen so many times and it’s time to call it what it is – unethical.

Talking About Ethics (Part 2)

By Linda Fisher Thornton

Dialogue is a powerful tool for developing ethical organizations. Workplace issues are complex and opinions vary about what ethical leadership means. This combination creates a kind of “murky uncertainty” that keeps leaders from giving us their best, most ethical performance.

Ethical Values Are Good For Business (Part 6)

By Linda Fisher Thornton

Ethical values can drive positive business results, but only if leaders continually learn and apply better leadership, and stretch to grow. With the bar for expected leadership set so high, it will be a continual career-long stretch for our leaders. But leaders shouldn’t be scared off by this, because taking this journey also provides a deep sense of meaning, satisfaction and making a positive difference.

Ethical Leadership Development: Preparing Leaders For the Future

By Linda Fisher Thornton

I spoke with Human Resource leaders attending a Richmond SHRM Strategic Leadership Conference about The Future of Ethics and Business Leadership. The lens I used to frame the discussion was leadership development – how we can prepare leaders to lead ethically in a highly complex, connected future.

Here are some highlights from my presentation – a few of the important success principles for developing “Ethical Leader Future.

10 Quotes to Inspire Leaders in 2024 (Part 2)

By Linda Fisher Thornton

This series includes 10 quotes (linked to blog posts with leadership guidance) to inspire you and help you improve your leader development as we head into the new year. Part 1 included the first 5. Here are 5 more:

Ethical Thinking and Decision Making for Leaders (Part 1)

By Linda Fisher Thornton

Welcome to Part 1 in the series “Ethical Thinking and Decision Making for Leaders.” Welcome to Part 1 in the series “Ethical Thinking and Decision Making for Leaders.” Ethical decision-making is not simply a task. It is the process of analyzing and understanding multiple connected variables in a changing context AND applying ethical values to make responsible choices. It requires doing the work to understand issues clearly before making decisions or taking action. In each post in this series, I’ll explore one aspect of this complex, connected process. Today I’ll focus on the importance of deep thinking. 

10 Years of Top Posts: Leading in Context Blog

By Linda Fisher Thornton

This week I’m sharing The Last 10 Years of Top Posts on the Leading in Context Blog. It’s a time capsule of the issues you thought were most important over the last 10 years. For each year, I have selected a theme that reflects the topics and focus of the reader’s most read posts.        

Seeing The Facets of Facts Part 2

By Linda Fisher Thornton

Building on last week’s post about Seeing the Facets of Facts, this week I’m digging into the dangers of “Partialized Facts.” When I say “Partialized Facts” I refer to treating one perspective on an issue that is only part of the picture as the whole truth. I have seen it happen so many times. It’s time to call it what it is. Unethical.

Ethical Leadership Fuels Adaptability

By Linda Fisher Thornton

The post “Leader Competence: Will It Be A Multiplier or Divider?” generated some great discussion on social media. Here’s a quote from the post: “Leader competence is either going to be a multiplier or a divider. When you have it, you multiply performance and trust, with exponential results. Without it, you divide your possible results by the incompetence factor.”

After reading the post, one reader requested that I write more on the topic. This week I’m digging deeper into the multiplying and dividing effects of leader (in)competence, looking at how a leader’s ethical competence impacts trust, people, bottom line results and organizational adaptability: