This week, I was assigned the reading On Leadership by Nannerl O. Keohane as part of my leadership studies. In it, Keohane explains that effective leaders often balance traits that appear to be in tension—empathy and detachment, passion and proportion, courage and moderation. She argues that this balance is essential for making sound decisions while staying connected to the people they serve.

During my first week in the EMDIA program one of the first topics we were studying is leadership, who is a leader, what makes a leader and what traits does a leader carry. After a long time studying these questions — reading, observing, and reflecting on history and current events — I’ve reached one clear conclusion:

The greatest strength a leader can have is empathy.

In all the leadership frameworks I’ve encountered, from Keohane’s emphasis on judgment, adaptability, and self-confidence to modern studies of crisis management, empathy is the quality that gives these traits meaning and direction. Without empathy, judgment can become cold, adaptability can feel mechanical, and confidence can drift into arrogance. But with empathy, a leader’s decisions are grounded in humanity.

Empathy enables a leader to see beyond statistics and strategies to the people affected by them. It fuels the courage to act not only in the interest of political gain but for the sake of dignity, compassion, and justice.

We’ve seen this in practice:

• H.E. Lulwa Al Khater, after October 7, embodied this principle. In a moment of geopolitical tension and immense humanitarian suffering, she communicated with a tone that balanced firmness with compassion. Her public statements and on-the-ground advocacy did not simply deliver political messages; they carried the human stories of those in crisis, amplifying voices that might otherwise have been drowned out.
• Similarly, Jacinda Ardern, then Prime Minister of New Zealand, demonstrated extraordinary empathy after the Christchurch mosque attacks. She did not limit herself to formal addresses. She stood among the grieving, wore a headscarf in solidarity, and spoke in a way that made every Muslim in New Zealand feel seen, protected, and valued. Her leadership in those days was not measured by policy alone, but by her ability to comfort a nation and unite it against hate.

Keohane’s work shows that during crises, leaders rise when they combine clarity of thought, adaptability, and self-confidence. But in my view, empathy is the multiplier — the quality that transforms these traits from functional to transformational.

A leader who listens, understands, and truly feels the weight of others’ experiences can make decisions that resonate beyond politics, inspiring loyalty, trust, and hope. And that, I believe, is what makes a true leader.