Most leaders don’t create urgency on purpose. They inherit it. They react to it. They amplify it without realizing what’s happening inside the system around them. But over time, something predictable begins to occur: when everything feels urgent, people stop believing...

One of the most common leadership questions I hear sounds something like this: “Why doesn’t anyone bring things to me anymore?” What makes this question so confusing is that it’s usually asked by capable, intelligent, well-intentioned leaders. Leaders who value...

We talk a lot about accountability in leadership — and for good reason. Accountability creates clarity, alignment, and trust. After all, we can’t leave things undone for fear of accountability. At its best, accountability helps people understand what they own and how...

One of the biggest blind spots I see in leadership isn’t effort, intention, or even care. It’s assessment. Most of us are far better at judging than we are at assessing. We look at outcomes and quickly decide: success or failure, right or wrong, pass or fail. And...

Most leaders think being right is a strength — or even a job requirement. But what if that instinct to be right is actually making you less effective? What if it’s the very thing that keeps teams stuck, creativity sidelined, and collaboration surface-level? When I...

Leaders talk a lot about empowerment. We say we want people to take initiative, make decisions, and step into ownership. And when things feel heavy or overwhelming, the instinct is often to step back and give people space. But here’s the tension: stepping back can...

This isn’t a post about politics. It’s a post about leadership decisions — specifically, what happens when leaders avoid necessary conversations because they feel uncomfortable, risky, or divisive. In the current climate, politics can be the backdrop. But politics...

When trust is intact, conflict becomes possible. Not the destructive kind — the kind most people fear — but the productive kind. The kind where people speak honestly, challenge ideas, and stay engaged even when they disagree — why? Because you’ve built a culture of...

If you’re serious about ownership and responsibility, rules will eventually be broken. That’s not a failure of leadership. It’s a reality of working with human beings. Even in teams with clear expectations, strong relationships, and shared goals, someone will...

This time of year comes with a quiet pressure to perform. The perfect gathering. The perfect mood. The perfect version of ourselves — patient, grateful, present, and somehow untouched by exhaustion or disappointment. Most of us know better. And yet, every December, we...