“The attention to others that kindness implies disarms resentment and anger, even in the workplace.”
Interview For philosopher Laurence Devillairs, author of a fascinating essay, "Being a Good Person. Philosophy of Good and Evil," it is high time to rehabilitate this unjustly despised quality.
Interview by Elodie Lepage
"The cynical superior, the one who manages through contempt, does not create cohesion [...] whereas a kind leader carries his team along with him," describes philosopher Laurence Devillairs. SIGRID OLSSON/PHOTOALTO VIA AFP
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When we asked you for an interview about the power of kindness, you responded with great enthusiasm, as if the subject was very close to your heart.Laurence Devillairs: That's the case. Rehabilitating kindness is a struggle for me. It's a strong word, but I'm sticking to it. We consider kindness a flaw, a sign of weakness, when it's quite the opposite: it's a quality that requires a lot of courage. Kindness is subversive; it's capable of turning situations around. In the current context of constant opposition and clashes, restoring it to its rightful place is a matter of…
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