Leading Without a Crowd

A leader's journey starts alone.

Leadership needs the courage to push boundaries and challenge norms. It feels great and is fulfilling and, at the same time, isolating.

When driving change, the slow pace of buy-in or lack of immediate support can feel like standing alone. But that solitude is a marker of progress. This is how it should feel at first.

That's when you need patience. You are just creating space for others to join when they are ready. They just need time to process.

Feeling lonely as a leader isn't failure. Every great idea starts with someone bold enough to stand alone until others see the path forward.

Step Back to Lead

Good managers know when to step back.

Intervening too often stifles creativity, ownership and morale. Teams thrive when leaders provide clear direction, trust their abilities and give them space to execute. Micromanagement creates bottlenecks, while autonomy pushes innovation and accountability.

The best work happens when leaders empower, not overshadow.

Leaders thrive on connection. Taking time to engage with teams builds trust and fuels collaboration.

The risk lies in misreading commitment. Valuing late nights over outcomes sends the wrong message, tying effectiveness to hours rather than impact.

Great leadership doesn't trade presence for results. It inspires through balance and focus.

One of the smartest things the new CEO did was start an “open door” policy. His version of that was walking around and getting to know people, but also inviting anyone and everyone to stop by his office after 4 p.m. to talk; there was no agenda. He let them know that he would stay as late as necessary if they wanted to chat. Many nights he didn't leave the office until 8 or 9 p.m.

David Rohlander, The CEO Code

Shared Slipups

Mistakes teach faster than manuals. But only if they're visible. And shared before they sit quietly and start to build up.

When a leader owns a mistake in front of their team, something powerful happens. The room relaxes. People stop pretending everything is perfect. They stop tiptoeing. It sends a message that trying, failing and learning is part of the job - not a threat to it.

Most teams don't freeze from lack of skill. They freeze from fear. Fear of saying the wrong thing. Fear of trying something new. Fear of being the only one who didn't get it right. But when a leader steps up and says, “Here's what I got wrong, here's what I learned and here's what I'm changing,” that fear starts to fade.

Because the next time something goes sideways, there's no hiding. You've already shown how it's done - how to take ownership, how to bounce back.

But don't overdo it. This isn't about dumping your insecurities on your team or confessing every minor wobble. It's not a therapy session. Oversharing makes people uneasy.

So keep it simple. Share what's useful. Wrap it in action. Frame the mistake as a lesson, not a spiral. Make it clear you're learning faster than before - and pulling the team forward with you.

Think Like a Farmer

I can't recall where I found this picture, but it's such an interesting analogy. Leadership is like farming - nurture the right conditions and growth will follow.

That said, sometimes you end up with the wrong crops or weeds mistaken for crops and it's just as important to weed those out.