Back in the day, I posted a saying on social media from one of my mentors, Brad Waggoner: “If you want to make everyone happy, don’t be a leader. Go sell ice cream.” People now attribute the quote to Steve Jobs or to Nick Saban, but I promise it was from Brad. The post went viral because it resonates so deeply with leaders. There are high expectations and different expectations from all kinds of people and groups. Thus, it is impossible to make everyone happy with your approach or your decisions.
If you become obsessed with making people happy, you won’t be an effective leader. You will be enslaved by what people think, and you won’t think about what is best to serve the people you or your organization are positioned to serve. If you want to be a leader, you can’t be a people-pleaser, though your role is to serve people. And if you want to be a people-pleaser, you can’t be a leader. The difference between a leader and a people-pleaser comes down to motivation. A leader is motivated by a burden to serve others. A people-pleaser is motivated by applause.
