A man has sparked a discussion online after sharing why he believes managers should avoid becoming too friendly with people they supervise. Drawing from his own experience of leading a team, he said that failing to maintain professional boundaries eventually left him feeling that his flexibility had been misused.
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In a video shared on Instagram, Hemant Wadhwani reflected on his experience at a previous workplace and explained why he now believes that managers need to establish a clear line between themselves and their teams.
‘Never ever be a cool boss’
“Never ever be a cool boss. I repeat, never ever be a cool boss. So, I don't know how many of you will relate to this, but this is from one of my past experiences. I was working with a company, I was managing few people, and it is my behavior, or I would say it is my habit, that I don't like to make people feel like I am superior to them - like people who are around me or the people to whom I am superior, to whom I am managing,” Wadhwani said.
He explained that his approach was to avoid making junior colleagues feel that he was above them. However, he said his experience eventually changed his perspective on how managers should interact with their teams.
{{/usCountry}}He explained that his approach was to avoid making junior colleagues feel that he was above them. However, he said his experience eventually changed his perspective on how managers should interact with their teams.
{{/usCountry}}“But now I realise that that is something which is very important. You need to create some boundaries, some very clear boundaries, because the leverage that you are providing is actually destroying you. You don't know when people start misusing that and start backstabbing you,” he added.
Sharing his advice for other managers, Wadhwani continued, “I gave a lot of leverage to all my team, all the people who were junior to me, but this is one of my advice from all this experience: that it's always better to maintain a line between and to make your boundaries very clear.”
He shared the video with the caption, “Never be a cool boss.”
Watch the clip here:
Video sparks reactions
The post prompted several reactions from social media users, with many weighing in on the importance of workplace boundaries and respect.
One user wrote, “Boundaries are important at work.” Another said, “Respect matters more than being ‘cool’.” A third person disagreed with the broader idea, commenting, “Being kind is not the problem.” Another viewer found the experience familiar and wrote, “This is actually very relatable.”
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HT.com has reached out to the user for his comments, and the copy will be updated once his response is received.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)