Criticism

In Gordon B. Hinckley — Go Forward With Faith, criticism is treated as the foil to encouragement-based leadership. The anchoring story is Adney Y. Komatsu’s: across three years as a mission president, Hinckley “never once… criticize[d] me, despite all my weaknesses” — instead of telling Komatsu “all about the weaknesses that I already knew about,” Hinckley would grip his hand “like he was pumping water out of a well” and say “You’re doing great work,” leaving Komatsu wanting to “give 105 percent, not just 100 percent.” Kyle’s reading distills the lesson as “lead by encouragement, not criticism.”

The book sets this against what Hinckley called “a spirit of criticism.” As a member of the Presidency he warned: “Men and women who carry heavy responsibility do not need criticism, they need encouragement. One can disagree with the policy without being disagreeable concerning the policymaker,” concluding with the plea: “Restrain your tongues in criticism of others. It is so easy to find fault. It is so much nobler to speak constructively.” The concept pairs naturally with Empathy and Self-control as facets of how Hinckley led.

Where this appears

• Gordon B. Hinckley — Go Forward With Faith — the Komatsu encouragement story and Hinckley’s warning against “a spirit of criticism”; encouragement over fault-finding as a leadership principle