South Africa, Aug. 29 -- We've been taught for decades 'not to take things personally' in various contexts - leadership, work, life, conflict, and even your mother's advice on practically anything. Professionalism is often regarded as a compliment, and understandably so. Treating yourself and others with respect, being reliable, behaving 'appropriately', remaining calm and objective in conflict situations, keeping your personal and work life separate - the list is endless, and well-meaning. However, when detachment and dispassion start becoming proxies for professionalism, the world becomes infinitely duller, which is tragic.

As Adam Morgan writes in The Pirate Inside, 'If you look at people who we regard as highly successful, and the re...