It's surprising how many leaders hire me for training but choose not to participate in the workshops that they send their employees to. Now such executives are not the majority, for sure. But I remember the weirdest session ever took place on the day I watched a boss pacing outside in the corridor for the entire four hours. He entered the room during the last five minutes and said, "Well, I hope you learned a lot today and that you will show me some changes around here!"

Team managers who go out of their way to attend tell me they would have missed out on a leverageable management experience had they decided to stay in their offices. Instead, they say they feel less like a lonely boss and more like one of the guys. They have new skills for persuasion and performance management. They understand their own weaknesses better and know who to ask for help. Conversations become more respectful because new understanding makes it easier to deal with core differences among all employees.

Sure, it's easy to understand why a boss might not want to participate. Getting too close or friendly with employees can feel risky in the face of tough decisions later on. Excessive egalitarian decision making can run counter to company policies. Or it could be as simple as thinking, "I don't want them to ever forget who the boss is." And who would argue this is not possibly valid for military and paramilitary units, e.g., police and fire?

But I will still make a case for improving communication with personality-based training even within a military hierarchy. Understanding core personality differences helps everybody on the team think outside themselves. It gets everybody intensely on the same page. It makes calls for quick action more attractive. It helps team members bond in ways that may not have been understood before. Most importantly, leaders end up knowing a heck of a lot more about the team in general and how to lead them like a champ.