Margaret C. Andrews shared something this week that stopped me in my tracks.
She ran an exercise at MIT asking leaders to think about the best boss they ever had—and then identify why that person stands out in their memory.
The results?
Almost every answer pointed to interpersonal skills, not intelligence, not technical mastery.
And when she ran the same exercise with Harvard scientists, IQ mattered even less.
Across thousands of people, in every industry and geography, the pattern holds:
About 85% of what makes a “Best Boss” comes down to human skills, not hard skills.
The top qualities people remember?
They trusted us.
They listened.
They challenged us to grow.
And they cared about us as people, not just performers.
We keep trying to teach leadership like it’s a technical discipline.
But the truth is simpler:
Great leadership is a human art.
The best leaders make you feel seen, safe, capable, and supported, and those feelings become the foundation for extraordinary performance.
In branding, in business, in life, people never forget how you made them feel.
And neither do your teams.
So here’s the question I’m asking myself today, and maybe you can ask it too:
What are the human qualities your team will remember you for?