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The more senior someone is, the easier it is to forget they are a human being. 

It is no great secret that people in positions of authority often get short thrift when it comes to being treated like, well, a person. From chief executives and major players in the business world through to doctors - the latter of whom are often attributed with, and expected to take on, a God-like demeanour despite being mere mortals just like the rest of us, the more powerful you are, the more inhuman you can become in the eyes of others. 

The uncomfortable truth is that we don’t always like to see the people we look up to for instruction and guidance to show weakness. And, given the fact that humans make mistakes, it can be easier to hold those in positions of power to unrealistic standards of robotic infallibility.

It’s a funny lie we tell ourselves though, isn’t it? Because we all know that, no matter how senior someone is or how big the company they run, they are human and they do make mistakes. Lots, probably. No one at the top of their game got there by getting everything right along the way. 

There are signs that things are changing. The world of real estate, largely spurred on by the innovation sector, has become much more open to embracing failure. Dean Hopkins once famously revealed that, when he was COO of Oxford Properties, hiring people who “know how to fail” was central to his strategy along with F-Up nights where failures would be discussed, analysed and sometimes even celebrated as part of a wider goal to “fail in small ways rather than have huge catastrophic fails.”

And could it be that hearing honest accounts from senior leaders about what it takes to run a business in challenging market conditions is now considered a sign of strength, rather than weakness? 

Anyone who was at CREtech London’s opening keynote will know that JLL’s global CEO Christian Ulbrich opened up about how it had been much harder than he had predicted to turn JLL into a digital-first real estate business. He talked openly about the financial risks and how he had endured “a tremendous amount of pushback” personally. 

The reaction to that keynote spoke volumes. His honesty was met with widespread praise, respect and, I would imagine, relief from an audience and a wider industry quietly wondering whether anyone else is facing the same challenges they are.

I discussed this in more detail in a rare interview this week where I found myself answering, rather than asking, the questions for a change. 

As part of a wider conversation about CREtech’s ‘less is more’ content strategy for the New York and London shows with our very own Michael Beckerman, we discussed the importance of remembering that people are human, no matter how senior they are, when it comes to on-stage (and off-stage for that matter) interviews. 

There is, it turns out, great strength in being human. In having the courage to reveal pit-falls, hurdles, concerns, worries and even fears.  Something we would do well not to forget. 

Speaking of content, and humans for that matter, this week marked the launch of Well-Placed with Emily Wright over on Substack. A new, fortnightly publication from me shining a light on the people, projects and ideas – you guessed it – well-placed to future-proof the world we live in. Focussed on the power of human-centred design, I will be speaking to some of the best-known players in design, development and urban planning to better understand the evolution and future trajectory of places and spaces and looking at the projects and city plans setting a new standard across the world. You can subscribe for free here and check out my first post, “The future of the built world is messy.” Thanks, and enjoy.

Register now for 25% off your CREtech New York pass with code EMILYNY25. This offer is valid for one week.

- Emily

Emily Wright

Head of Content

CREtech

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