Lead with Heart

When those who follow us do not know what is inside of us, how can we possibly expect them to be genuinely engaged?

Although the rule about leaders keeping their personal and professional lives separate is unwritten, it is pervasive and quietly destructive

if we dared to blur our professional and personal relationships, we would lose an essential part of our ability to lead. Our underlying concern was that being more open about ourselves and more connected with others could be a slippery slope. We could lose our objectivity, and people might call our capacity to hold others accountable into question. We could end up playing “favorites,” and those whom we favored would get an easy pass.
We also might appear vulnerable if we opened ourselves up, which would eliminate the mystery of leadership. If we let down our guard, others might see our soft spots and shortcomings. Worse yet, we might appear weak, fallible—perhaps even expendable.