Love As a Business Strategy: Resilience, Belonging & Success, Updated Edition

by Mohammad F. Anwar, Frank E. Danna, Christopher J. Pitre

Groundbreaking, people-first strategies for organizational growth, profit, and longevity

Chock-full of real-world examples of mistakes, heartbreak, and redemption that makes it read more like a juicy exposé than a business book, Love as a Business Strategy offers a new, people-first framework for achieving any business outcome. Written by authors who aren't fans of run-of-the-mill, nap-inducing business or leadership books, this book clearly shows that a better way of doing business is possible, helping readers ditch the status quo, embrace humanity, and achieve lasting success.

This book steers clear from piety and theoretical concepts and instead share the realities of real people running real businesses, covering concepts

The potential harmony between organizational culture and hard data The biggest mistakes that organizations make in pursuing profits at the expense of people Practical ways to better serve customers, clients, and employees while still enjoying standout financial success Entertaining, visionary, and highly practical, Love as a Business Strategy earns a well-deserved spot on the bookshelves of all entrepreneurs, managers, and executives seeking perspective-shifting knowledge and strategies to get better business results without sacrificing their human side.

233 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 24, 2025

About the author

Mohammad Anwar
CEO of Softway



Mohammad is the youngest of five children and was born and raised in Saudi Arabia by Indian parents from Bengaluru. He graduated from the University of Houston (Go Coogs) with a BS in Computer Science and started Softway at twenty, where he still serves as the President and CEO.

Mohammad lives in Sugar Land, Texas, with his amazing wife Yulia, a Russian diver and five-time Olympic medalist, and his beautiful children, Sufia and Moshin. In his spare time, he enjoys fitness, watching college sports, and butchering American idioms.

Reviews

[Aaron Mikulsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice business success story and lessons that sound like Mikulsky's book L.O.V.E. 2 Lead on Servant Leadership. Here are some highlights I captured:

Create a workplace that puts humanity first. It’s the right thing to do.
People and profit don’t have to be mutually exclusive.
Unfortunately, many organizations put little thought into the workplace environment they create.

No one changes their behaviors because of data. They change when they understand the experience behind the data. When you lead with numbers, you neglect the people behind them. But when you lead with people, you allow the numbers to take care of themselves.

“Love as a business strategy means embracing a deep-rooted and intrinsic care for other humans. It means working as a team and prioritizing honest, kind, and transparent communication. It means putting other people before yourself. It means looking to the person on your right and on your left and asking what is best for them, not what’s best for you. It means working toward and celebrating our shared humanity, not just chasing profits.”
A culture of love is an All-Star team, not just a team of All-Stars.

Harvard’s Amy Edmondson is famous for studying psychological safety, in particular the way in which doctors and nurses worked together in teams. Edmondson also examined the role of teamwork during the operation to rescue a group of 33 stranded Chilean miners in 2010. Psychological safety is much easier to destroy than it is to create, unfortunately. A culture of love uses transparency and open communication. It encourages team members to talk about every safety incident openly so that the focus is on learning rather than blaming.

The late great Peter Drucker said, “culture eats strategy for breakfast.” In addition, “behavior eats culture for lunch.” Culture is the result of individual behaviors built up over time. Anyone can influence culture, but leaders have an outsize influence. “Individuals behave in a way that either strengthens or destroys their relationships with others. And as their relationships go, so goes the organizational culture. The healthier the relationships, the healthier the culture.”

In a healthy culture, team members are:
Encouraged to communicate, be open, and share their perspectives and ideas.
Secure in the belief that no matter what their identity or background, their contributions are valued, and their voices matter.
Able to be forgiven for mistakes and behavior.
Able to give and receive feedback freely.
People believe their work is engaging, their skills are put to good use, and the work they do matters.
Approach people as fellow human beings, regardless of title. When everyone is on the same side, then everyone’s contribution matters. Give your team members the space to feel safe enough to speak. Flush the issues out in the open so you can understand them, unite around them, take ownership of them, and then work together to solve them.

Important work always takes time. Change often is felt before it’s measured. Sometimes the smallest moments of change can spark a change that no one could have imagined.
Success is built out of consistent daily actions and strong, inclusive relationships that are rooted in truth and mutual respect.

Mindsets are the foundation of our behaviors. Attitudes are the outward expression of our mindsets. Communication is how we engage with others based on our mindset and attitude. The book references Carol Dweck’s book Mindset where she discusses the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. The three essential attitudes mentioned in the book are: flyer, fighter, and influencer.

If your organization was on the verge of closing its stores, would you dig in and fight, or would you jump ship? People fight for what they believe in. Once you feel like you belong somewhere, you will fight for it, protect it, defend it.

Reflection is useful, but it’s only a surface-level assessment. Introspection means thoughtfully, assessing where you are, what needs to change, and why. Effective introspection requires: gathering feedback, consistency, accountability, and patience. Remember: people can’t see intent. Actions will drive how other people perceive you.

The Six Pillars of Love are laid out in a specific order in practice they are interrelated and interdependent. Inclusion depends on trust, empathy, and vulnerability to succeed, for example. You need all six firing in harmony to create momentum and move forward. The value is not in the concept but in the practice.
Empathy is being able to turn off your mic and turn up the volume on everyone else. It’s about understanding the underlying emotional experience and moving forward together with someone rather than leaving them to struggle on their own. “Empathy naturally creates connections, builds cultural competence, and teaches us how to negotiate differences and connect with others through shared experiences and values.” “The greatest byproduct of empathy is more empathy.” As a leader, you must be willing to go first.
“Apathetic management takes care of the business while disregarding the person. Sympathetic management takes care of the person while disregarding the business. Empathetic leadership takes care of the person in the context of the business.”

The Golden Rule is: treat others as you would want to be treated yourself.
The Platinum Rule is: treat others as they would want to be treated.

“A culture rooted in vulnerability allows people to be open and honest and share meaningful emotions. They are willing to own and learn from mistakes rather than needing to be seen as perfect.” Sharing your struggles may not change the situation, but it does contribute to feelings of safety, understanding, and resilience. Showing vulnerability requires attention, authenticity, humility, and active engagement with others. Let go of ego (let your guard down and take off the armor); don’t be mean; be your best self. Model the way. There’s no need to be blunt, rude, or destructive to others.

“We work better when we know we have permission to be uncertain, to make mistakes, and to take ownership of those mistakes without ridicule or blame. Teams operating in a psychological safe environment communicate better, solve problems more effectively, and are more creative and innovative.”

Vulnerability-based trust is built out of three core elements of trust: relationships, expertise, and consistency. Vulnerability-based trust means telling people hard truths out of the desire to help someone look out for their best interest. This constructive accountability helps eliminate fear, improve loyalty, and build high-performing teams.
How often do you give each other feedback?
How do you handle mistakes?
Are you willing to talk to a coworker directly about their mistake even if it hurts their feelings?
When teams operate from a place of predictive trust, they see their work only in terms of what they know rather than what is possible.
Signs of trust:
Team members know that their deficiencies won’t be used against them.
Team members are quick to resolve disputes and conflicts and don’t stoop to gossip or slander.
Team members act without concern for protecting themselves.
Team members have more than a surface-level knowledge of those they work with.
“When you are empowered to do your job, you feel valued, trusted, respected, and included. You feel as if you can bring your full self to work, contribute to a culture of love, and help grow the organization.”

“Forgiveness is the ability to look past someone’s mistakes, shortcomings, or offensive actions, and continue to build a relationship.” Forgiveness is not a one-and-done event but rather an ongoing, renewing process. Forgiveness loses its potency quickly if no action follows the apology. In order to forgive, we must be willing to see the goodness in the person we are forgiving.
“Forgiveness isn’t something we do for others, but something we do for ourselves. It’s a way to release ourselves from our pain, to overcome the grudges we hold, and to find peace both within ourselves and with those around us.” One of the best approaches to initiate forgiveness is service.
“A culture that actively practices forgiveness sees tremendous benefits in productivity, creativity, and innovation. When you lose fear, when you’re unafraid of judgment or punishment, you feel empowered to take risks and to think boldly.”

To lead is to serve. In a culture of love, leaders aren’t focused on the trappings of their role, but rather on how they conduct themselves – on which behaviors they bring to work, how they interact with others, and how they lead and inspire their teams.
Servant leadership is a philosophy and a set of practices in which leaders put the needs of the team before themselves to create an environment where the team can be successful.
Note to the Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership, which focuses on enriching the lives of individuals, building better organizations, and creating a more just and caring world.
Put others’ needs first. There’s all more going on behind the scenes; never assume we know what people are dealing with. Learn about your team members by asking questions and engaging with them.
Be humble enough to learn and vulnerable enough to apologize.
Don’t ask others to do something that you’re not willing to do.
Assume good intent (A Theory Y approach).
Look for the good in others and find the weaknesses in yourself. Learn to love your team. (How can you love your team when you’re so focused on all their mistakes and bad behavior?) Our role should be to bring out the best in the team, not highlight their worst. Through constant introspection and self-awareness, you can identify your flaws and work to become a better leader. We are always under construction.
Respond instead of react.
Know that power does not equal leadership.
Take care of others (who in turn will take care of you).
Inclusion and belonging begins with servant leadership.
Change starts with you.

As a leader, every single move, every single behavior, every single action we take (or don’t take) will be critiqued, judged, and second-guessed. There is no fairness in leadership. Leadership is a responsibility. Every organization is a reflection of the leaders who built it. Every choice you make is an opportunity to build that culture up or tear it down. You set the tone – and for better or worse, others will follow.

“Successful teams trust each other in all directions, often without question. They demonstrate empathy through listening, are open to each other’s feedback, make fast friends, and solve problems collaboratively.”

The five traits of high-performing teams (a team that regularly exceeds expectations): autonomous, six-pillar culture, “We” is greater than “I,” outcomes oriented, fine with failure. Risk-tolerant teams are “more vulnerable, openly share and discuss ideas, and experience greater comfort and camaraderie.”
“Problems aren’t fixed through process and technology. They’re fixed through culture, behavior, and team dynamics.” “All processes are made by people. Most processes are performed by people. Don’t forget the fundamental humanity that drives them.” Numbers alone will never tell the whole story. Ask: What problems are sitting just below the surface? What are the numbers hiding that you’re not looking for?
Remember: Behind every number, behind every metric, are the people who create them.

If you want repeat business, serve your team so they can serve your customer. Take care of your people, and they will take care of your organization.

Ensure you retain the right people and say goodbye to the wrong people.
Do not tolerate culture vultures, who take from the culture, but not give back. If a person is unwilling to introspect on their misbehaviors and make a change, then the only choice is to exit them before they drive away other valuable team members. If someone is not willing to follow the values that you live by, then they can’t stay. When it’s clear you need to exit someone, treat them like a human.

As the late CEO of Oracle, Mark Hurd, one said, “Any idiot can cut costs. That’s easy. The true measure of a leader is whether you can find revenue.”

In creating an Agile organization, you need to focus on culture first and learn how to communicate in a way that drives change. Before employees learn the mechanics of Agile, they must first learn the mind sets that drive it. Articulate what the change would mean to every team member and connect their priorities to the larger business case. For a change to take hold, it must feel personal. Develop an actionable change strategy and practice good change hygiene. Leaders must always model what they need from their teams.

Start with vision and values as it’s vision and values that have the potential to unite people behind change. Translate the vision into tangible, consistent behaviors. Alignment around your vision and values must begin at the senior-most level. As a leader, you must believe in and model the values and the change you want to see.

In communicating change, make the case, one skeptic at a time. If you can convince and convert them, they will become your biggest advocates. If you’re looking to create a lasting change, you must be willing to put in deep, sustainable work for a long time before you see any measurable results at all.
Most culture-based initiatives fail because they don’t focus on meaningful change to begin with. They failed to get at the root problem: behaviors. Focus on behaviors.
Culture transformations can be both expensive and time-consuming, but think of the expenses not as costs, but as investments, that can pay off tenfold.
The average person spends over 90,000 hours at work. Those in leadership positions often spend much more than that. Commitment is the hardest step on the path to change because it’s the first. From there, each step gets a little easier.

Creating culture happens in small steps, in daily repetitions, in every moment of introspection.
Know you’re why. It’s easy to think of change as a what. But look deeper. Lasting change always begins with why.

“When we struggle together, we learn together. When we learn together, we succeed together. Embracing our basic humanity and approaching our work with inclusion, trust, and empathy isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of strength.”
If you’re willing to stand up for a better culture and you get fired for it, then you probably shouldn’t be working there in the first place.

[Nathan Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had some good insights. One thing I liked was the "platinum rule" which says that we should treat others the way they would want to be treated, rather than treating them the way we want to be treated. The book also emphasized putting people at the center of every decision we make rather than money, efficiency, etc. The examples were slightly repetitive and there definitely could have been less chapters, but overall this was an enjoyable class read.

[Hila · Rating 1 out of 5]

I put this down halfway through because it offered nothing new and read more like a sales pitch than a leadership book. The tone is self-congratulatory, the insights are basic, and the content felt padded and repetitive. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.

[David Huber · Rating 3 out of 5]

Get as close to Christian love as possible but not