Emotional distance is pretty much fuckin' vital.
Becoming emotionally attached to any person at all will lead one to being open to manipulation, whether intentional or otherwise.
You run the game. Your mind must be set, fully, on running the game. Not appeasing the people, or improving the lot of the people, or impressing the people. The game is ultimate. Anything else is what you have other staff for.
ETA: I'd take pretty much anything @EmmahSue has to say regarding headstaffing as gospel. She's been through the ups, the downs, the me. She has gone through more than her fair share of BS to get to where she is in our community's esteem.