Everyone wants the perks of being a leader. The respect, the authority, the freedom to “do what you want.” The performance bonuses, access to resources, the ability to hire and fire people. 

Not everyone is willing to take the responsibility for being a leader, though. Having to act in a way that earns that respect. Not abusing your authority, and the realization that although you can “do what you want,” at the end of the day you’re responsible for every decision, as well as the decisions of those you lead. The performance bonuses hinge on performance, adding to the pressure, the resources require accountability if you squander them or misallocate them, and now you have to learn how to both hire the right people, as well as fire people in a way that doesn’t break any labor laws. 

Ben Parker said it best – “With great power, comes great responsibility,” and you have to ask yourself – is this what you really want?