????“人們看一個人首先看到的是頭銜，”他說。“他們來不是和弗蘭克聊天，而是向老總匯報。而向老總匯報時，人們總會言不由衷。”小組討論可以給員工一個機會，從個人的角度來和高管交流。

????就像其他人一樣，老總們也需要一個安全的地方講出心中所想。沃頓商學院教授邁克爾?烏西姆覺得其它公司的董事會就是這么個地方，老總在那里也只是個董事而已。他們也可以在工作之外尋找這樣的地方。烏西姆說：“我曾經碰到過好些老總，他們都自發地組織了個人小組，”他們在小組里可以自由談論。其實，這個想法由來已久。比爾?喬治是哈佛商學院（Harvard Business School）的管理學教授，他寫過關于其“真北”哲學的書，里面講到和同行會面，最終形成一個緊密的情感支持小組。他說，自己的小組是其職業生涯的無價之寶（比爾?喬治曾擔任醫療科技公司美敦力的首席執行官——譯注）。

????按照薩波里托的說法，緩解孤獨感最終需要管理自身脆弱的技巧。他認為：“人們自身的脆弱是孤獨侵入的途徑。”老總們試圖周旋于股東、員工和監管者之間，“他們使盡渾身解數，但到哪里去訴說內心的憂慮，哪里去談論可能的選項？只有極少數的人可以傾聽，”他說。這些彌足珍貴的人也許是首席董事，或者是深得信任的顧問。“他們確信那個人只會考慮什么最符合自己和公司的最高利益。”

????將公司的最高利益置于首位其實是老總們打破孤立的好方法。如果覺得自己在為超越自我的事業而奮斗，老總們就能忽視甚至享受那種孤獨的感覺。坐在私人辦公室里，整個世界看起來都在和你作對。現如今，如果沒有堅實的事業能讓人與之共鳴，這種感覺或許并不是錯覺。

????"When people look at you, they look at your title first," he says. "They're not coming in to talk to Frank, they're coming in to talk to the CEO. And when they're coming in to talk to the CEO, they're not going to tell you what they really think." Focus groups are one possible method to give employees room to communicate to top executives on a personal level.

????Just like everyone else, CEOs need a safe space to say what they really think. Chief executives can find it, says Michael Useem, on the boards of other companies, where they are among true peers. They can also look outside the office. "I've run into various chief executives that consciously create personal groups," Useem says, where they can talk off the record. It's a concept that's been out there. Bill George, a professor of management at Harvard Business School has written books on his "True North" philosophy, which involves meeting with peers who, over time, form a tightknit emotional support group. He claims that his own group has been invaluable to his career.

????Mitigating loneliness all comes down to a skill that Saporito defines as managing one's own vulnerability. "That's where the loneliness comes in," he says. CEOs are trying to maneuver between stakeholders, employees, and regulators, "and while they're trying to do all that, where can they say what's on their mind or talk about their options? To precious few people," he says. Maybe a lead director or trusted advisor. "That person is someone they know whose agenda is nothing more than what's in the best interest of the CEO and the company."

????Prioritizing the best interest of the company, actually, can be a great way to break the CEO isolation bubble. CEOs who feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves can either deflect feelings of isolation or justify them. From the corner office, often, it can look like the world is against you. And these days, without a solid, relatable cause to stand behind, it just might be.