Holding opposing ideas in tension is essential to being a good leader.
I’m fully certain that there aren’t many worse musical leaders than J.K. Simmons’ Terence Fletcher in Whiplash. He is abusive, manipulative, and repeatedly demonstrates an utter lack of care for his students.*
But.
But the anti-Fletcher wouldn’t be much better. Because inherent in Fletcher is a demand for the highest levels of musical performance. He cares about the music as much as he doesn’t care about his students. Caring for your students but not caring deeply about the music doesn’t do the music–or the students–any good.
It’s only when we find place in between, with both Fletcher and anti-Fletcher in tension, that we can hope to serve both our students and the music.
This, by the way, is one of the reasons I love Ted Lasso. At first glance, he seems like the anti-Fletch. But he actually holds tension between abiding love for those he’s coaching and hard work to motivate them to do their best.
* I’m also aware that Whiplash wouldn’t be a good movie with a kind leader. The story is about abuse, of a kind all-too-common from leaders of every kind.