The perks and the price of leadership

People love the perks of leadership. The nice car, the corner office, the business-class flights, and the expense accounts.

- FRANCIS J. KONG

It's the kind of lifestyle you see in corporate dramas and K-dramas, and many wish they could have the same scene play out in real life.

However, as I often emphasize in my Level Up Leadership trainings, yes, leadership comes with perks, but it also comes with a price. The privileges may be visible, but the pressures, the decisions, and the emotional weight? Those are often carried in silence.

The appearance of leadership looks impressive until a leader must make decisions that receive no support from others. Winning appears great in the beginning until reality shows that it leads to incorrect understandings from others, ignored text messages and lost followers.

Some years ago, in a company I co-owned with two partners, we made a classic mistake: we hired a manager who talked a great game—all charm and confidence but had the work ethic of a sloth on vacation. Over-promised, under-delivered and nowhere near a results-driven leader.

When her team's performance started to slip, I sat down with all of them for a serious discussion. Nobody said a word. Just blank stares and polite nods. But the next day, I saw a passive-aggressive Facebook post from the manager: "Some people are so good at inspiring others... except their own team. They leave their people demotivated, sad, and miserable."

Guess who the first ones to "Like" the post were? Her entire team.

I brought this to one of my partners and asked, "So? Thoughts?"