Leaders who are respected are 12x more likely to be seen as effective than those who are simply liked. This is because respect is tied to competence, fairness, and consistency.

Respect in leadership isn't about titles or status, but about treating team members as capable adults rather than children. This helps avoid learned helplessness among teams, and creates environments where people feel safe to take risks, speak up, and even fail without fear of punishment.

Robyn Djelassi is a Chief People Officer, non-executive director, and coach. She runs her own HR consultancy working with organisations across Australia, with a focus on helping organisations achieve business results through their people.

Her approach to HR is a little different from the warm-and-fuzzy cliché that has permeated the industry, but is done with heart.

Robyn’s ADULTS leadership framework

• A: Accountability over approval. Don’t lead to be liked; lead to be trusted.
• D: Debrief, don’t rescue. When mistakes happen, resist fixing them for your team.
• U: Uncomfortable is useful. Don’t smooth the edges; people grow through the stretch.
• L: Let go of control. Ask “Have I made it clear what success looks like?”
• T: Trust before proof. Trust people before they’ve earned it.
• S: Say less, ask more. Use questions to help people think for themselves.

Episode highlights

• [00:09:03] What new leaders think leadership is
• [00:10:37] The "cool mum" approach to leadership
• [00:14:12] What we mean when we talk about respect
• [00:15:39] We're getting psychological safety wrong
• [00:20:07] Findings from Google's Project Aristotle
• [00:23:43] How to garner respect as a new leader
• [00:24:39] Robyn's ADULTS framework
• [00:30:32] Robyn's media recommendation
• [00:31:57] Takeaways from Pia and Dan

Links

• Connect with Robyn via LinkedIn
• We Used to be Journos – Robyn’s podcast recommendation
• Track and improve your team performance with Squadify
• Leave us a voice note