The recent 2025 Australian elections were charged by much stronger undertones than normal. They weren’t simply a nod to a particular party platform, but a vote by the majority of the Australian people affirming a set of national values, i.e., compassion, kindness, and inclusivity. In a world where the thermometer has been fluctuating wildly around “woke” sensibilities, Australians have drawn their line in the sand to say these are not dispensable virtues.
At Performance Frontiers, we see compassion not simply as kindness, but also as a disciplined practice – the ability to notice suffering or challenge, to feel with others, and to respond in ways that elevate rather than deplete. It’s central to leading adaptively, regeneratively, and with impact.
We believe that compassionate leadership, therefore, doesn’t soften performance. Rather, it sharpens it by opening the space for humanity and high standards to coexist, allowing individuals and systems to thrive in tandem.
Empathy and Compassion
While our ability to empathise is the emotional conduit that allows us to put ourselves in someone else’s situation, compassion is the desire to alleviate another person’s suffering. It’s the next step: the manifestation of a compassionate field of energy that allows us to show up and show care.
This distinction is important for leaders, especially when we consider the rate of burn out among executives. The emotional energy involved in holding empathy is significant and can become dysregulated if not contained and channelled. If, as a leader, you catch yourself in a state of emotional overwhelm, it might be that you need to shift out of empathy into compassion.
Compassion acknowledges that we “feel” for another person’s circumstances but puts us into the more practical space of seeking to act upon that feeling. This is a constructive way to ensure empathy energises rather than depletes us.
Decision Making with Compassion
We know that leadership is a pattern-shifting act that brings clarity and consciousness to the decisions that shape culture and performance. Intentionally incorporating compassion over empathy may be the key to elevating decision-making by widening the frame, encouraging leaders to consider not just what’s operationally advisable, but what’s systematically wise.
According to Yale psychologist, Paul Bloom, using rational compassion is a more reasoned approach to decision making. He argues that:
- Empathy is biased – we tend to empathise more with people who are similar to us, which can lead to unfair decisions.
- Empathy can be emotionally exhausting – constantly feeling others’ pain can lead to burnout (especially in healthcare and social work).
- Empathy can lead to poor moral choices – it often focuses on individual suffering rather than broader systemic issues (e.g., donating emotionally to one child in need rather than funding a policy that helps thousands).
- Rational compassion allows for kindness and generosity without being overwhelmed by emotions, leading to better long-term decision-making.
In addition, rather than defaulting to short-term outcomes or rigid metrics, compassionate leaders pause to ask: What’s the broader impact of this choice — on our people, our stakeholders, and the ecosystem we’re part of? This is rigour in service of alignment.
In complex environments, where trade-offs are inevitable and ambiguity is constant, compassion serves as a vital check-in point. It allows leaders to discern the difference between reaction and response — between speed and substance. Through this lens, decisions are no longer isolated transactions; they become levers for shaping the future. Compassion is not a detour from performance. It’s a pathway to outcomes that are both durable and deeply human.
How Compassion Shapes Leadership
So, what are other ways that compassionate practice shapes leadership?
- Fostering Psychological Safety
When leaders lead with compassion, they create environments where people can be their full selves — voice, vulnerability, and all. This unlocks innovation, accelerates learning, and builds the kind of trust that withstands pressure and build resilience.
- Reinforcing Engagement and Loyalty
In organisations led by compassionate leaders, people don’t feel managed — they feel met. They’re more likely to stay, stretch, and commit to shared goals. A company culture that nurtures discretionary effort can unlock a true differentiator and powerful lever to organisational success.
- Transforming Conflict into Insight
Rather than avoiding tension or escalating it, compassionate leaders meet it with curiosity. They invite an understanding of diverse ideas, which, in turn, strengthens accountability by grounding it in care, not control.
- Cocreating a Regenerative Culture
Compassionate leadership signals that people are not just contributors to performance, but co-creators of the system. It shifts the thinking of an organisation from an extractive mindset to a regenerative one.
- Leading with Presence
In the face of turbulence, compassionate leaders steady the system. They acknowledge discomfort without being derailed by it. In doing so, they model presence — a vital ingredient for navigating complexity and holding the long view.
Compassion isn’t a soft skill — it’s a systems skill. One that reorients culture, strengthens relationships, and transforms performance from the inside out.
