Leadership Book Club | Paul Bloom - Against Empathy - The Case for Rational Compassion

WELCOME TO BOOK CLUB        

Do you love reading or exploring leadership content? Are you keen to be the best leader you can be? Can you inspire, learn from and share your experience with others? Whether you are starting out, are a seasoned leader or don't see yourself as a leader (yet) - you are in the right place.

The Leadership Book Club brings people together across the globe to discuss a different book, video or article related to leadership. We deliberately seek diverse content and perspectives to understand and learn from varied leadership experiences. We will discuss what we have learned and how we may (or may not) want to apply the lessons and strategies in our lives and careers.

OUR NEXT BOOK

Against Empathy - The Case for Rational Compassion by Paul Bloom

For as long as I can remember, empathy - or rather the lack of it - has been central in any conversation relating to design, leadership, consulting, coaching and more.

In this book Bloom describes how empathy "seeing things through other people's eyes - to try and feel what they might be feeling - has become a synonym for kindness, morality and goodness". 

Bloom then dismantles this view - making a case for "rational compassion" instead.  

So, is empathy a vital leadership attribute, or does it encourage us to be unconcerned for those folks we can't empathise with? And what does this mean for diversity, equity and how we lead?

We'll be discussing all of this and much more.

STRUGGLING FOR TIME?

If you don't have time to read the whole book, or if reading is not really your thing - have a look at the following resources and come along anyway :-)

• Read this Guardian article 
• Watch this video - viewing time 30 mins 
• Listen to Paul Bloom on the State of Mind Mental Health podcast