"Noblesse Oblige" - That's not a phrase you hear very much anymore. Do you know what it means? It originally meant that noblemen, the lords of the land, had an obligation to the commoners. That was how society was run in ancient times, and a nobleman who knew his obligations would see to it that the poor and the sick in his domain were taken care of, and that the peasants who worked on his land were well fed and had decent living conditions. It also meant that if people look up to you, and call you "Sir", and treat you like an important and privileged person, you really have an obligation to be worthy of the honor - a role model.
Times have changed, but that principal holds true today. With every honor, there comes an obligation. I've received some honors lately, and it's pretty clear that everytime I am given a leadership role, I take on the responsibility of another job. I don't mind it - I like to keep busy - but it's clear that I have to pay back in service. That's where respect comes from. I get the feeling that if I ever retire from business, I'll have a full-time job taking care of those responsibilities.
Whether you're going to be put in charge of the church bake sale or the country, the honor means that people are placing their trust in you. When someone announces your name and people applaud, something inside you answers and demands that you invest a lot of time and energy (and maybe even dip into your own wallet, too) to see that things are done right and everyone is taken care of.