It Starts With Heart
By Rodney Bullard
CEO The Same House PBC | Former Senior Executive at Chick-fil-A / Global CSR, ESG and Marketing Leader | Best-Selling Author | Former AUSA | Former Air Force JAG l Corporate and Non-profit Board Director
“When the heart speaks, the mind finds it indecent to object.” — Milan Kundera
One of the biggest challenges as a community is being divided. Isolation can breed misunderstanding, mistrust, a lack of communication, apathy, a lack of adequate working together, and, amongst other things, thoughts that communities don’t care about or appreciate each other (even when they might). When we are divided and don’t have bridges, we have inequities in over-policing, healthcare, education, and economic opportunities. We have mistrust because we don’t have a bridge or connection. We have false narratives. We start making up stories about people on the other side—those who are not us.
As a community, we need to choose to trust in humanity. It is not easy and requires a deliberate and unnatural choice. This can be accomplished by recognizing our fragility, society, and intentions and empathetically ascribing our humanity to others. It’s about producing compassion for a fellow person and neighbor. As Jesus said in the Bible, “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other” (John 13:34 NLT).
As the Bible says about loving each other, we must prioritize leading with the heart. We must assume that everyone is doing their best to be accepting, kind, and honorable. This puts people first and plants the seeds for servant leadership. As people’s highest priority needs are met, we can elevate each other’s well-being and growth.
Those with malicious intent cannot be roadblocks or excuses to abandon justice. This is when we must rise higher and speak for those who cannot speak, stand for those who cannot stand, and extend compassion to those who don’t know how. We must be the extended hand that reaches out despite no reciprocation.