Pleasing people

Wednesday, October 1

Leadership isn’t about being liked. It is about moving forward.

Too many leaders confuse popularity with effectiveness. They spend their energy trying to keep everyone happy, and in the process, they stall progress.

Being a people-pleaser is a fast path to being stuck.

That doesn’t give you an excuse to be a jerk. Being harsh or careless with people is lazy leadership. But if your goal is to be liked, you’ll play it safe, you’ll compromise on standards, and you’ll avoid the hard conversations that growth requires.

Great leaders aren’t driven by applause. They’re driven by purpose. They’re willing to disappoint people in the short term in order to serve them in the long term.

Your job as a leader is to cast a vision worth following, create a culture of trust and accountability, and move people toward excellence.
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​Some days, that will make you unpopular. Some days, people may not like your decisions. That’s okay. Your role isn’t to be everyone’s best friend, it’s to make everyone better.

Don’t chase approval. Chase progress.

Keep chopping wood. 🪵🪓

-Kevin