I thought to myself the other day about what makes a Leader someone you’re willing to be lead by?
I came to one very simple conclusion: If you don’t fear your boss or love your boss (or at least like your boss), you probably don’t really “respect” your boss.
I put respect in quotes, because what does respect really mean? Is it something earned, is it something expected? Generally in the work environment, respect is expected. Your boss doesn’t need to earn it. If you fear your boss, you work hard out of fear of losing your job or being yelled at. If you love your boss you will go the extra mile for their approval or just because you want them or the company to succeed. Anywhere in between there is either apathy or resent. Don’t fear them enough…resent that they ask you for anything. Don’t love them enough…apathy, you’ll say “eh, whatever they like me enough.”
There are plenty of essays and articles written on this same topic. I will not argue that respect that is expected is the same as that which is earned. I think that from the perspective of the subordinate, if you don’t either fear or love your boss, chances are you won’t take them as seriously.