I think that the author’s premise in the first article about leaders embracing vulnerability.  Allowing yourself to be vulnerable, especially as a leader I feel allows for space to grow as well as provide a sense of humility, because they’re subject to failure.  I think it can also make leaders seem more relatable, giving off the vibe that, hey even though I’m in charge, I’m still learning and growing as well.  Though I feel this can also be counterproductive, because if a leader gives themselves too much leeway in being vulnerable, then they could end up becoming too relaxed and not enforcing things they should be.  For example, if an officer stops enforcing standards, things can get out of hand quickly.  Over the summer I had the opportunity to listen to several officers give talks while I was in Fort Knox.  One quote that stuck with me from one of the officers was “un-bloused boots equals murder.”  I don’t remember the exact details behind that quote, other than it was an about soldiers in an Army platoon who were deployed in Iraq who were accused of raping and murdering a civilian and her family.  The officer’s main point was that basic standards weren’t being enforced by leadership and one the soldiers realized they could start getting away with things, everything began to unravel.  While an extreme case, if a leader gives themselves too much leeway they may stop enforcing things they should be and this could have major consequences.

Overall, I think that when leaders allow themselves to become a little vulnerable it can lead to them growing more than if they tried to just give off the façade that they’re perfect and nothing they can or will do is wrong.