From Inner Mastery, Outer Impact by Jitendra Wadhwa
Babette's story:
Babette, an organic chemist, was doing drug research at a lab. Her boss was a well-regarded scientist but also a very temperamental man. After taking some coaching from a renowned psychotherapist, Dr. David Burns, on how to engage better with her boss, Babette one day walked into his office to find out what he thought of a research paper they were coauthoring. He told her that he had thrown it in the wastebasket because it was the "worst piece of rubbish" he'd ever seen. The paper represented months of arduous research. Babette replied,
Gordon, I'm not a bit surprised that you thought the paper was rubbish. To be honest, I had the exact same feeling when I was writing it. I felt like I was rambling on and on. I'm always amazed when I read your papers because they're so incredibly clear and lucid. That's actually one of the reasons I wanted to work with you and why I was so excited when you offered me a position last fall. The results of our research could be extremely important, and I know that if the paper were well written, it might make a tremendous impact. The paper may be beyond repair, but I'm wondering if you might have any suggestions about how I could make it better. I want to learn as much from you as I possibly can.
Who was the leader?