Middle friendships.

I've heard that middle management may actually not even be in the "middle." It can be more like bottom management. It can feel like you're in this space of little autonomy and no appreciation—an empty realm of likely burnout. 

Wow. That's a brutal way to put it. 

Sure. When one is promoted into a leadership role, the relationship dynamic changes. You now supervise someone who was once a peer or even a friend. So now you have to act differently? Maybe. Or perhaps less than you think because the short answer is that it depends. 

We shouldn't need to take a course to know that you can be friendly to everyone while not becoming friends with everyone. Should your achievements and status take a backseat to the more essential things? Things like shared values.