The worst leaders are remembered for what they did to their people, the best for what they did for their people. It’s as simple, and as tricky as that.
Tricky because as a leader it’s easy to focus solely on tending to the business and your career, forgetting that tending to your people first will take care of both.
Over a thirty-year career of leading others I’ve learned that delivering the “for” is as important as delivering the forecast (again, they aren’t mutually exclusive). It’s what good leaders, and good human beings, do. However, even with the most altruistic intent, you can miss doing the kind of things that epitomize your number one role as a leader.
