Be Yourself
One of the unique things that we find out when looking at the various great managers that have inhabited the halls of a corporations across the world and time, is that while each one of them were different in personalities, there was something that every single one of them did have: being true to who they were.
That was one of the key insights that Herb Kelleher, the well-loved former CEO of Southwest Airlines (LUV), said was a major key to succeeding in leadership.
The simple admonition from Kelleher? Be yourself! That's one of the most frustrating thing that those in business leadership face, is when they are a square 
peg that is always trying to fit into a round hole. It just can't work.
Why is being yourself so important? Because you can't be anything else without pretending. When pretense becomes part of your everyday life, it just won't work for you or the company. Eventually the continual pressure to be something you aren't will cause you to diminish in effectiveness in the company.
Herb Kelleher had this in spades. He didn't try to be anything but who he was in light of the purpose of the company and people he served. Who he was made one of the most unprofitable business sectors in the world, not only a business success, but a cultural phenomenon that people searched out heartily to try to emulate - but without much success.
It's just another one of those things that the great managers focus in on that aren't necessarily considered very important by those that are satisfied with acting out a part that adds not value to the company or satisfaction to themselves. Kelleher had it at the top of the list of importance to being a great business leader.
Other Herb Kelleher Sources:
Herb Kelleher on the Record, Part 1
Belief Model for The Leadership of Herb Kelleher (Southwest Airlines)
Herb Kelleher, Chairman, CEO and President, Southwest Airlines
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