You have to look the part. That’s especially true for leaders.

It’s what people expect – a snappy suit, perfect hair, always on form, always exuding confidence and authority, every moment of every working day. After all, leadership is all about attraction – attracting people, potential, possibilities, talent, results and outcomes. But it’s unfair that better-looking people may be better placed to achieve those outcomes.

“I hope...” We say it to ourselves so often. It’s something we all crave, and need to survive and keep going (especially the last couple of years, jeez). So why does that word not come up more with leaders? And I’m not talking about, ‘I hope you’re not going to miss that deadline,’ or ‘I hope my team relationships are going to recover,’ or ‘I hope I’m cut out for leadership.’

Who inspires you?

Why doesn't humanity learn? Why do we keep fostering cultures that support the same types of leaders in power, disrupting harmony and attacking innocent people to satisfy egomaniacal needs?

We’ve seen it since the dawn of civilisation, read about it in history books, learned about it from our grandparents, and are looking at it on the news right now, surreal, and terrifying in it its echoes of World War 2. These sorts of leaders aren’t always in charge of a country; sometimes they’re ruining lives on a daily basis by running companies.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if you could wake up tomorrow morning knowing that all your work relationships were miraculously perfect?

Wouldn’t it be great if every conversation with every direct report from now on went smoothly, with zero friction, zero miscommunications, zero awkwardness, and zero difficulty? Just you and them, constantly and happily on the same page?

Here’s the problem with trying to measure someone’s entire future based on their past: you can’t possibly know what’s coming. Especially if a lot of existing factors and variables are going to change too. Elements such as working environment, employee demands, desired leadership skills, company culture, learning and development paths (all of which either already are or should be evolving inside of every set of walls). It’s a sure-fire way to underestimate, undervalue and underserve your people.

It’s always painful to admit when things have gone out of date. Whether it’s your hairstyle, those blueberries you literally bought yesterday, or the values of your organisation. It’s why I often find that there's a certain resistance around recognising that values might be a little bit dated, or that they need to change. Change can be frightening, but it’s about stepping up. To the hero’s plate.

They’re not secrets at all, actually. They’re all listed right here on my website. They’re my values, and I love sharing them with people in the hope they’ll change their life like they did mine. Because the fact that I live and breathe them has meant the success of my own personal development, my business and my work as a leadership development consultant and HR thought leader, and my entire life. They’re why I am who I am; why I do what I do; and why I love it all so much and keep smashing it out of the park.