I know of an individual who thought that just because he held the title “CEO” all of his direct reports (and their direct reports) would automatically respect him. This person did not pay very much attention to how he would EARN that respect; he thought he deserved it just because of his title. There is some amount of truth to that – we do need to respect the POSITIONS in an organization, and there is a certain amount of respect automatically due a CEO. However, to earn respect at a deeper level , as a true leader, takes a bit more work than just sitting in the corner office. I learned early in my career that CEOs, Presidents and Executive Directors all have one thing in common. They are human. Inevitably, humans make mistakes. It’s what happens AFTER someone makes a mistake that matters. In the case of the CEO I mentioned earlier, he consistently refuses to admit to any weakness, mistake or error of judgment. He goes so far as to blame others for his mistakes or misjudgments. If a project goes awry, or doesn’t bring in the intended results, he chastises the project owner, and even disavows any
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