Don't put your leader on a pedestal, instead put them in a place of high expectations with enough space for imperfection.
Expect strong, expect accountability, expect humility, and expect the desire to be better than yesterday...but don't expect the myth that your leader is perfect.
Always thinking of others, doesn't make tone-deaf statements, always has the answer we need when we need it. Will catapult us into parts of the stratosphere we didn't know existed. Always calm under pressure. Respected, never feared. Always uses their influence for the forces of good and never for their own benefit, doesn't ever consider cutting a corner, doesn't make promises that can't be kept.
Wouldn't that be something... a leader that has all these traits and dozens of others I've failed to mention.
But it's a myth.
Every leader.... including the absolute greats fail in one or a half dozen of these areas.
Some things are more forgivable than others but regardless, they are attributes of humans. Humans in position of power and influence.
Here's a thing to consider.... you should want them to possess some of these defects. What if they didn't? How many people would get fired on the spot for the smallest mistake? How much lack of compassion would you experience if you had a perfect leader?
Be grateful for the fumblings and missteps of our leadership...
Expect strong, expect accountability, expect humility, and expect the desire to be better than yesterday...but don't expect the myth that your leader is perfect.
You want, you need someone you can relate to at the highest levels. You want this so you can have the opportunity to stumble and recover.
Don't put your leader on a pedestal, instead put them in a place of high expectations with enough space for imperfection.
PS: This article was first published on Chris Shyrock's Linkedin Blog
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