Comment by noisy_boy

I have had two managers that stood out among many others due to one main quality (they had many other qualities): they were umbrellas, not funnels. They basically tended to the team like a gardener, handling each plant differently in a way that makes it most productive, shielded them from external pressures (though not to the point of mollycoddling), exposed the good work done via publicity and once all that was necessary was done, stepped back to let the plants be fruitful instead of blocking the growth by micromanaging.

It is a very rare quality and few can pull it off - if you find a boss like that, consider yourself lucky.