NKD Inspires: Compassion is our best tool
If the past year has shown us anything, it’s that whilst compassion can be one of the most valuable traits we have, sometimes it feels as though it can be hard to come by…
Someone who realised the importance of compassion is Dr Omar Atiq. An immigrant to America from Pakistan, Dr Atiq has become a successful oncologist and opened his own cancer clinic in Arkansas in 1991. However, like so many others, Dr Atiq had to close his clinic in February 2020 due to staffing shortages and with $650,000 of outstanding debt, a story far too familiar in this day and age.
But where did this large debt come from? Outstanding patient debt.
Dr Atiq never denied treatment to a patient – even if they could not afford it. Through recessions and global crises, Dr Atiq always showed compassion to those in need, to people who had life changing news.
What’s more?
Rather than asking his patients to pay their outstanding bills, Dr Atiq cancelled all outstanding debts from his patients, again showing monumental compassion. Dr Atiq explained, “I just hope that it gave them a little sigh of relief and made it easier for them so they could face other challenges they may be facing in their lives.”
Dr Atiq is a leading example of selflessness and compassion at a time where our instincts are to protect ourselves and our loved ones first and foremost. Being able to look outside of ourselves is hard at the best of times and harder still during a pandemic. However, we can all take something from Dr Atiq’s example.
At NKD, we are focused on helping people on an individual and company-wide level. Compassion for others is key in our communication and fluidity as teams has been a defining feature of success during the pandemic. Undoubtedly, compassion helps to foster engaged and passionate workplaces and McKinsey explained that ‘the goal is to refocus individuals away from trauma and toward a better future for themselves and the business as well’ by showing compassion.
Not only is Dr Atiq a compassionate being, he is an exemplary leader.
Whilst Dr Atiq’s decisions were life changing, we can learn that compassion, no matter how small the act is, can be the difference between someone having a bad day or a great, even life changing one. We all have the ability to make the world a better place, whether it’s making someone a coffee or cancelling debt.
Who should we feature in our next, NKD Inspires? Hit the connect button and let us know!