Leadership Loyalty: Truths & Myths | #Teamwork #PeopleSkills

What is leadership loyalty? Perhaps the best way to start is to ask ourselves what is loyalty? What are the truths to understand and myths to dispel? They affect business results, employee engagement, teamwork, morale, and everyday relationships.



Leadership Loyalty: Image is the word loyalty.

Leadership Loyalty: Truths & Myths. Image by COM via Flickr Creative Commons License.

Image by COM


What is loyalty?

The firm and constant support of a someone or something. That sounds simple enough yet it doesn’t play out so simply in everyday life. At work, teamwork and leadership loyalty can seem especially complicated.

We often connect the phrase “I’ve got your back” with loyalty. Yet the mention of loyalty raises questions about what that means.

  • When customers criticize a team member, does team loyalty require defending the team member? Or can we stay open to customers’ feedback and still be a solid team?

  • How can we disagree and still be loyal?

  • If we discover unethical actions, do we speak up? Or does loyalty require looking the other way, silence, or even covering up what we know?


Leadership Loyalty: The Questions Broaden

Now if we expand the focus from loyalty to leadership loyalty, consider the additional questions it raises:

  • If we disagree with leaders and they see it as disloyal, will they try to discredit us actively or ruin careers behind the scenes?

  • How do people see the whistle blowers of unethical leadership behaviors? Loyal to integrity or disloyal scamps?



Leadership Loyalty: Myths & Truths

True loyalty does not require lies or cover ups. It doesn’t place one person’s needs, goals, or aspirations above all others. These are the myths that float from the insecurities or selfishness of those demanding it or approving of it. Loyalty doesn’t defend mistakes or malicious intentions.


I offer the following truths about loyalty:

  • Loyalty is not about agreeing all the time. In fact, constant agreement is sometimes a sign of convenient loyalty to get something you want. This is not loyalty.

  • Loyalty doesn’t lie. It doesn’t lie for those we’re loyal to nor lie about those we’re not loyal to.

  • Loyalty is not at odds with integrity. Moreover, it doesn’t supersede integrity. When everyone has and shows integrity, it doesn’t question or damage loyalty.

  • Loyalty results from showing respect and building trust.




Your turn: What is your view of loyalty especially leadership loyalty?

What if anything is more important than loyalty in effective leadership?



From my professional experience to your success,
Kate Nasser, The People Skills Coach™

©2017 Kate Nasser, CAS, Inc. Somerville, NJ. I appreciate your sharing the link to this post on your social streams. However, if you want to re-post or republish the content of this post, please email info@katenasser.com for permission and guidelines. Thank you for respecting intellectual capital.


Kate Nasser, The People Skills Coach™, delivers coaching, consulting, training, and keynotes on leading change, employee engagement, teamwork, and delivering the ultimate customer service. She turns interaction obstacles into interpersonal success. See this site for workshop outlines, keynote footage, and customer results.



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