Many years ago, while on a sales trip that took me into southeastern Kansas, I visited Con Livingston in Girard, KS. Con had been my first boss after college graduation, when I became a staff engineer. Con was a great guy and I enjoyed working for him. Con and Mary had invited me to stay for the night and we took a short drive to their lake property to relax and cook a little supper. The property consisted of their lot with a two car garage sized shelter (not really a cabin) and a dock.
We walked onto the dock and Con pointed to the right near shore and said "That is where the water moccasins live. We don't go swimming over there." Water moccasins are poisonous snakes and there would be no way I would going swimming anywhere in that lake! I feared them.
Con, on the other hand, respected them and would not invade their territory, but he was comfortable in the rest of the lake.
Fear and respect, so close together, yet so far apart. It is important as a manager, whether managing a company, or your own children, to know the difference. You may want respect, but have fear on the part of those you are "leading'. That is not effective leadership.
Read this link and you might FEAR them too.
So maybe I was right to fear them and Con was potentially courting real danger by only "respecting" them!
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