Tech Leader Pro podcast 2024 week 14, be careful where you place your deference

The amount of authority figures you defer to in your life should be a very short list indeed. Notes: Recently I seen Dune part two, and it got me thinking about deference again. According to the dictionary: "deference - respectful submission or yielding to the judgement, opinion, will, etc., of another." Ref: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/deference The Dune story acts as a warning for us not to blindly follow a charismatic leader. In the story, a tribal leader Stilgar suffers from a profound religious deference towards a young leader, named Paul Atreides, who he believes is a messianic prophet that will lead his people to freedom. Stilgar places so much deference in Paul, it almost becomes comical in the latest version of the movie. He is portrayed as a zealot. In spite of Paul's discomfort with this, he finds himself surrounded by fanatical followers who will follow him blindly into a holy war. An extreme fictional example perhaps, but our history is full similar real examples. Polite deference to a senior colleague, a teacher, or a parent is welcomed as a mark of respect. Blind deference to a superior can be dangerous however. The amount of authority figures you defer to in your life should be a very short list indeed. Everyone else should be questioned. Deference is intrinsically related to trust, and once trust broken, so is deference. Deference placed upon the shoulders of a young leader is a heavy burden, a theme explored wonderfully in Dune. Paul resents it. The movies are great, but please read the Dune books by Frank Herbert! What I am working on this week: Ongoing testing of the internet search indexer for the Alpha Framework. Media I am enjoying this week: Diaspora by Greg Egan. Notes and subscription links are here: https://techleader.pro/a/640-Tech-Leader-Pro-podcast-2024-week-14,-be-careful-where-you-place-your-deference