The paradox of authority is that it often grows when you voluntarily lower it. Johnstone would sit cross-legged on the floor and declare that any failures were his responsibility. By visibly yielding, he released students from fear. Authority accrued precisely because only someone secure in their standing could afford such diminishment.

Why it works:

Status threat elevates cortisol and narrows attentional scope. When leaders lower their own position, group stress falls, and oxytocin rises, strengthening affiliation. The effect is measurable: in Edmondson’s research on psychological safety, teams in which leaders admitted fault reported more errors initially but performed significantly better long-term. Authority, in this framing, is not a fixed possession but a dynamic exchange — power ceded can become power multiplied.

Why it’s difficult:

Contemporary managerial culture equates leadership with projection. To sit lower than your subordinates feels counterintuitive, even humiliating. Yet history offers examples: Lincoln deliberately deferred credit to rivals, while maintaining command. His low-status gestures reinforced his high-status legitimacy.

How to try it:

Begin a meeting by making yourself explicitly accountable for any breakdown. You invert the usual defensive hierarchy; the group, feeling protected, is more likely to take risks.