The Best Leaders are Broken

Perhaps it’s time to alter the definition of “perfect” when it comes to leadership.

Myself included, leaders usually aim for perfection in every role and function of their job. I am a self-imposed victim of the pursuit of perfection, and I know that motivation often comes from a place of wanting to be liked, respected, and admired.

Perfection though, as we typically think of it, is really quite boring. Imagine heading to the cinema to watch a movie where the protagonist never struggled, never faltered, and never experienced defeat or agony. It would bore you to death. You would never watch it again.

The great stories, the ones that provoke the investment of “Based on a True Story” tag-lines, are the ones where the main character set out to conquer their mission and experienced grand frustration and defeat. Rocky, The Pursuit of Happyness, 42, Cinderella Man, Remember the Titans, are all stories of struggle.

The main characters in those real-life stories were broken. They made mistakes and learned from them. They hurt the ones they loved and had to own it and apologize. They flirted with the temptation of quitting and resisted.

When you have experienced that brokenness, you can calmly look into the eyes of that struggling team member and surrender your heart in order to help them.

Embrace your brokenness and tap into its power. Get dirty and dive into the mess. Pretending to be perfect will get you nowhere but stressed.