54 THE BIBLE ON LEADERSHIP
Greyston comfortably makes whatever Ben & Jerry’s requires and has
leftover capacity to sell to other companies.
MATERIALKINDNESS
Emotional kindness and compassion are felt deeply by the recipient. So
is material kindness, particularly when that is what is most needed.
When a person is in need of food or shelter, whether temporarily or
permanently, it is of little help to tell him of your ‘‘strong emotional
support’’ without addressing that need. Jesus knew that the material
needs of people had to be satisfied before they would be open to the
spiritual message, which is why he was so quick to provide loaves and
fishes to 4,000 even when his resources seemed meager (five loaves and
two fishes). Perhaps as someone who was born in a humble manger
because there was no room at the inn, he could appreciate the material
needs of his followers.
One man who would not have turned Jesus and his family away
from his inn is J. Willard Marriott, CEO and chairman of Marriott
International. Marriott creates an entire culture in which the ‘‘stranger’’
receives a warm bed and, more important, a warm welcome. ‘‘They’re
away from home,’’ he says of his customers. ‘‘They’re tired. Their feet
hurt. And maybe they’ve lost the deal they came to do...Bythetime
they get to our front desk, they’re whipped and we’ve got to take care
of them.’’ (Mary and Joseph should have met such an innkeeper!)
But Willard Marriott knows that the waters of compassion can’t be
drawn from a poisoned well. Kindness begets kindness. Employees who
are treated poorly don’t treat guests with the warm hospitality that sepa-
rates the average from the great in this industry: ‘‘We have to take care
of our employees; otherwise, how can we expect them to take care of
our customers?’’ notes Marriott. ‘‘If you’ve got a grouchy room clerk,
or... the waitress doesn’t say hello, you won’t enjoy your stay. And
every time I make a speech, and I mean every time, I talk about these
things. We want to help people—not only our customers, but the peo-
ple who take care of our customers.’’^8