You believe conflict aversion is the worst trait a CEO can have. Why?

As a CEO, everyone is pushing you for something constantly. If you are conflict averse, you are going to say yes to things you should say no to, or worse, you will avoid the conversation entirely and leave people confused. The company then starts going in all directions at once instead of focusing all its energy on that one bottleneck you are trying to unclog. And I think conflict aversion and truth-seeking are fundamentally incompatible. If you want to see clearly what is not working in your company or your strategy, you have to face those gaps head on. You have to be aggressive about it. I tell people it is like going to the gym. It is hard for everyone. Nobody loves it. But if you want to be a CEO, you cannot say I am the kind of CEO who does not do conflict. That is like saying I am the kind of athlete who does not train.