I was flicking through a selection of leadership reading and came across this quote 'If you want to be liked, get a dog!'. I laughed out loud when I read it. And not many leadership quotes have that kind of impact on me. 

 

This is not a justification for being distant, aggressive, inconsiderate, demanding, dismissive and undermining. 

 

It does make real sense, particularly from two perspectives. 

 

1) I recently heard a CEO using the phrase 'loneliness of the long distance CEO'. He was capturing the aloneness that a CEO experiences because of the responsibilities that rest with them. And while they can be advised and supported by others they have the responsibility to consider all of the perspectives and make a final decision. 

 

A consequence of this is that people in leadership positions will not meet everyone expectations - or put another way 'they wont always be liked' 

 

2) We all have different tolerances for handling tension and conflict. Some seek it out and others avoid it; and there are other positions in between these two ends of the spectrum. Avoiding conflict can be driven by a number of things, including not wanting to risk the relationship by naming uncomfortable truths.  

 

Or put another way 'wanting to be liked'.