What Leadership Really Is: Prestige

Only someone with sufficient prestige can get others to sacrifice their current interests to follow and obey them.

When people don't listen to you, the first thing you should examine is yourself. It proves nothing except your own shortcomings.

People shouldn't hold double standards. This isn't just a moral demand—it's telling you that double standards simply don't work. You can't expect obedience from your subordinates at work and then come home and make excuses to your children about it.

At home, you are the authority figure. The way your children view you is the same way you view your own superiors.

That's why the ancients spoke of cultivating oneself and managing the household. First cultivate yourself. If you do, others may or may not follow you—but if you don't, they certainly won't.