Intelligence doesn't make you a good leader. What matters is how you treat your people. Steve Jobs told candidates upfront that working for him would be tough, letting them choose with their eyes open. Respect and honest expectations beat money and intimidation.
What makes people, in my opinion, unfit to lead, no matter how intelligent they are, is the way they behave and the way they look after their people. And I'm going to share this with you because I think when you really start to get this, a lot of people say, you know what, let me just find good people and I'll just pay them even though I'm a jerk. I don't treat them well. I don't practice what I preach. It's do as I say, not do as I do. All that kind of stuff. I can tell you right up front, jerks do not keep people. Unless you're a jerk that tells people upfront that you're a jerk and that's how you behave. Look at Steve Jobs. Steve Jobs told people, he wasn't a jerk, but Steve Jobs told people upfront, by the way, I'm not easy to work for. It's gonna be a tough road. I will put pressure on you to get the stuff done you need to get done. But he did that upfront with every interview. So when people joined Apple, they knew what they were joining upfront. Sadly, most leaders or most people that think they are great leaders just think throwing more money at people will keep them. I can tell you, I've watched this numerous times. Money doesn't keep people. Being good and treating people the way they want to be treated in a great culture is what keeps people.
