You're drawing a false dichotomy. You can both be effective and build rapport with people. It's both/and, not either/or. In fact, building a rapport is actual

You're drawing a false dichotomy. You can both be effective and build rapport with people. It's both/and, not either/or. In fact, building a rapport is actually an important part of being effective. Esprit de corps is a real thing (and a military concept, to boot), and you do not get it by treating people like robots. However, you can't hack being kind and attentive. It only provides stat boosts if pursued as its own intrinsic good. Humans are really good at detecting false fronts - only world-class manipulators can consistently fool people into believing they're cared for. Given all that, an effective analyst like Buffett will understand that he should look for people who are effective and personable. They're out there, and they're better economic bets than the ones who hobble themselves by pretending emotions, kindness, and taking an interest in others for their own sake are irrelevant (I hobbled myself this way for years).