A message to all chiefs of staff: Don’t let candor be your kryptonite.

Read any job description for a chief of staff. You’ll see words and phrases like:

• Trusted advisor
• Confidant
• Strategic partner

You can be none of these if you’re not willing to be candid with the CEO you serve.

He or she needs your insights, perspective, and honesty.

Many people fear candor because they fear conflict. They are afraid that, through candor, there will be uncomfortable conversations, tensions, and sometimes even anger.

Yes, there will be all those things, and more.

But good leaders and healthy people work through the discomfort, the tension, and the angry emotions. We must. By staying at the superficial level, or becoming only a head-nodding yes person, you’re actually hurting the organization and the CEO.

More importantly, you’re not being the trusted advisor your CEO hired you to be.

The relationship between a chief of staff and the CEO is founded on mutual trust. Trust comes from candor and the ability to work through conflict together. Such moments strengthen the relationship.

Don’t fear it. Embrace it.

Otherwise, you can’t be the chief of staff you were hired to be.

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