At the 2024 New York Times DealBook Summit, Jeff Bezos explained that while he once believed projecting confidence and suppressing negative emotions was essential, he now sees the value in expressing feelings like fear and sadness. Recognizing that openness strengthens both personal and professional relationships, he emphasized that emotional honesty fosters better communication and decision-making. This shift highlights how embracing vulnerability can improve leadership and deepen connections.

Especially with my own family and close relationships, like my children, brother, sister, and parents, I realized I’m not really being intimate with them if I’m not sharing when I’m sad or scared. So I started working on that and found it very meaningful, deepening those relationships significantly. I then realized those emotions are valid at work, too. All emotions are like an early warning system; for me, stress acts as radar detecting something I’m not taking action on. If you channel negative emotions into frustration or anger, you’re not being precise. Now, I’ll listen for a while in a meeting, and when it’s my turn to speak, I’ll say I’m scared—and that’s more effective.