As a leader, which would you rather have from your people: dumb obedience or smart disobedience?

Your answer is probably “neither.” You want smart obedience: people creatively solving problems to get done what you want done. And, if you’re a good leader, most of the time you will have that.

Why just most of the time?

Because if you had obedience all the time you would be in deep trouble.

How come?

Sometimes, what you want done is not what should be done. Even the best leaders at times misread markets, ride hobby horses, or make a play that is too risky.

Case in point: Volkswagen (VW) before the diesel scandal, where the vaunted CEO decided they should build a $90,000 VW model called the Phaeton, when VW already makes Audi and Porsche. Would you buy a VW for $90,000? But the culture of VW was one of obedience, so a whole plant was tooled for this production. The vehicle was not a success.

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