In my experience, you bring a presence that has a calming effect on others, which is a powerful quality in uncertain and demanding environments. At the same time, I believe you cannot create anything of real value without holding both self-doubt and self-belief. Self-doubt keeps you questioning, refining, and avoiding complacency. Self-belief gives you the conviction to act and persist as without doubt, you risk stagnation. I think that without belief, you hesitate and never fully commit, and meaningful work requires the discipline to live with both.
The memory remains
When you are in a leadership position, even suggestions can be experienced as orders because power shapes how messages are received. Ultimately, decisions are made by those who hold the authority to make them, which brings responsibility, not entitlement. I think leadership is not about proving how smart, right, or impressive you are, but about using your position to make a positive difference. This requires humility and curiosity rather than the pretence of having all the answers. Trying to be something you are not erodes trust. Empathy also needs discernment: while it is often essential, applied without judgment it can sometimes hinder clarity and accountability.
“The one who fetches the water does not forget the path.” ”
The 8th habit
The biggest influence in life is habit, so I think to get better results one has to develop better habits. Have you read the Stephen Covey book, “7 Habits of Highly Effective People”?
1. Be proactive
2. Begin with end in mind
3. Put first things first
4. Think win-win
5. Seek first to understand, then be understood
6. Synergise
7. Sharpen the saw
8. Inner self growth and development
It's obvious
There are few skills more consistently rewarded with wealth and power than the ability to persuade people that their struggles are caused by others who are perceived to be more advanced. Rather than confronting complex structural issues or leadership failures, this narrative redirects frustration toward visible groups whose progress becomes framed as a threat. I think it’s a simple, emotionally effective tactic that trades nuance for blame, and while it can mobilise influence quickly, it does so at the cost of social cohesion, honesty, and long-term progress.
What do you think?
The gift of time
Am I simply a performance coach, or am I also a teacher?
For me, leadership is not about being the loudest voice in the room or having all the answers. It is what happens when you step back, speak less, and listen more, creating the conditions for others to think, learn, and lead. True leadership requires a willingness to empower teams with care and intention, rather than control. It also demands humility. If you cannot be challenged or corrected without becoming defensive or offended, meaningful growth becomes impossible. Growth, in leadership and in life, begins with the ability to listen, reflect, and adapt.
Growth tools
Do you have a healthy feedback culture characterised by psychological safety and honest relationships?
A strong feedback culture does not emerge on its own. It requires conscious practice and reflection, especially from leaders, to become better at both giving and receiving feedback. This includes having the courage to examine structural power, personal blind spots, performance, and how relationships influence dialogue.
When feedback is used effectively, it becomes a tool for learning and development rather than control. Here are seven questions that can turn feedback into a genuine growth tool:
· What is working well that I could benefit from doing more of?
· What could I do differently in our collaboration?
· How can we strengthen our communication?
· What strengths do you see in me that I could use more actively?
· How can I contribute to strengthening the team culture?
· What do you need from me in order to perform at your best?
· What can I do to develop further as a leader?
Compliance over competence
Have you ever noticed that some people move into management roles without having fully developed the skills required to lead others effectively?
Yes, this often happens in environments where visibility is rewarded more consistently than capability. In many organisations, promotion decisions prioritise predictability and low risk over potential and leadership strength. Individuals who maintain stability, avoid challenging existing ways of working, and create a sense of comfort for senior leadership are often seen as safe choices. Meanwhile, those who perform exceptionally well can unintentionally highlight gaps in systems, processes, or leadership above them.
Over time, this can limit the development of strong leaders. Commitment may be valued more than leadership capacity, alignment more than vision, and short-term comfort more than long-term growth. As this pattern becomes established, layers of management may reinforce existing behaviours, while high-performing employees experience frustration, disengagement, or decide to move on.
This is how organisations gradually normalise mediocrity, often without realising it. When leadership capability appears uneven across levels, it is rarely a matter of chance. It is usually the result of the structures, incentives, and signals the organisation has created. I think if organisations want more effective leaders, they must look closely at what behaviours they truly reward and whether those behaviours align with the future they are trying to build.
““Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” ”
Let it go
Leaders can become so focused on proving how smart or right they are that they lose sight of their purpose: to make a meaningful difference. Before speaking, pause and ask yourself: “Am I willing, at this moment, to invest the energy required to create a positive impact on this issue?”
I think that If the answer is yes, speak with intention. If the answer is no, choose to let it go.
““Never confuse education with intelligence. Intelligence isn’t ability to remember and repeat, like they teach in school. Intelligence is ability to learn from experience, solve problems, and use our knowledge to adapt to new situations.””
Providing shelter
Even when an innovative approach is proposed, procurement processes often prevent its adoption. Procurement teams tend to require like-for-like comparisons based primarily on price, which limits their ability to evaluate solutions beyond narrow cost metrics and reduces the role of innovation in decision-making.
““True leadership demands complete subjugation of self, honesty and integrity, uprightness of character, courage and fearlessness, and above all a consuming love for one’s people.””
Fox in the box
One of the most common themes that emerges in leadership development coaching is imposter syndrome and the tendency leaders have to second guess themselves. These feelings often surface at moments of transition: a new role, an expanded scope, greater visibility, or the pressure to deliver through others. When leaders question their capability, it influences decision quality, confidence in communication, and the ability to model psychological safety for their teams.
Coaches have a broad set of approaches to support leaders through this. The work involves helping leaders recognise the underlying beliefs that shape their internal dialogue, understand the organisational factors that reinforce those beliefs, and build strategies that strengthen self-trust. I think effective coaching begins with a grounded understanding of the phenomenon itself. Before we can support leaders in navigating imposter syndrome, we need to be clear about what the term describes and the different ways it can show up in a leadership context.
What are you capable of?
Who have you been raised to believe you are?
Who is the version of you that you want to preserve as you move through this season of life?
““We spend a lot of time teaching leaders what to do, but not enough time telling them what to stop.””
Without elimination, there can be no creation.
Would you like greater clarity on who you are?
To understand why you are pursuing something, and to define what success truly means for you?
When you do, you stop trying to fit in and start finding genuine connection and belonging with those who are walking the journey alongside you.
Change makes you want to hustle
Whenever change happens, our first instinct is often to resist it. It’s human nature as we crave certainty, familiarity, and control. In reality progress rarely comes from comfort and change rarely starts from the centre. True transformation begins at the edges, where people are willing to see things differently, to challenge convention, and to lead with intention. The edges are often uncomfortable places, and I think it is also here where creativity, courage, and new possibilities live.
Those who operate at the edges are usually the ones who ask the difficult questions, who see what others overlook, and who imagine what could be instead of settling for what is. Over time, their ideas and actions ripple inward, reshaping the centre itself. Real leadership is about creating space for that kind of change, encouraging others to explore the edges, experiment, and grow, even when it feels uncertain. This is because lasting transformation doesn’t happen to people; it happens through them.
NB: “Change (Makes You Want To Hustle)“ - Donald Byrd song
Can I trust you
As humans, we are hardwired to sense when someone isn’t being genuine. It’s a survival instinct which has been built over millennia of needing to know instantly: Can I trust this person? Do they truly have my back?
That instinct doesn’t disappear in the workplace. When a leader says something that doesn’t match their actions, people feel it right away. The result? Distrust, not just in the leader, but in the organization they represent. Authenticity isn’t a “nice to have” in leadership, it’s the foundation of trust. And I think without trust, there’s no influence, no loyalty, and no lasting impact.
Totally sensible
As we grow older, it’s natural to become more conservative in our choices and there is a really good reason for it. Younger people, with less experience to draw on, often learn best through experimentation. For leaders, this can be maddening to watch, especially if you’re guiding teenagers at home or early-career professionals at work. It’s part of the growth process as trial and error builds the wisdom they don’t yet have.
With age, leaders accumulate experience to guide decision-making, and at the same time, we have less time ahead to reap the rewards of risky experiments. The result? A natural pull toward caution. I think great leadership lies in recognising this tension: protecting against reckless risk while still creating space for others to explore, learn, and grow.
The curse of knowledge
As leaders, we often forget what it was like to begin. The uncertainty, the fear of making mistakes, and the challenge of navigating unfamiliar ground. This is the “curse of knowledge”: once we have mastered something, it feels so obvious that we assume others must see it the same way. We underestimate how valuable our experience, insights, and guidance actually are. The danger is that we stop teaching, mentoring, or coaching because we believe what we know is “too obvious” to be worth sharing.
We have to remember that what feels simple to us may be transformative for someone else. I think great leadership means remembering the beginner’s perspective and having the humility to meet people where they are.
Looking through different lens
How would the world be worse off if we did not exist?
In leadership coaching, this is a powerful question. Purpose is the competence of what you deliver as a leader. Culture is the intent behind how you lead others. And cause is the wider good you aspire to create through your influence.
Sustainable leadership shows that it’s possible to do well by doing good. Cultural diversity, for example, isn’t just about representation, it’s about fostering inclusiveness and valuing both differences and similarities within teams. Research shows that people, especially younger generations, are more engaged and committed when they believe in a cause-driven purpose. I think this only works when leaders demonstrate authenticity and coherence. Claiming to be “purpose-driven” isn’t enough; it must be visible in the way you lead, the culture you build, and the impact you create.
It's a journey
The best leaders I know are much like the best scientists: they balance two qualities in equal measure, humility to admit what they don’t know, and curiosity to keep seeking new knowledge. That combination is what turns leadership into a journey rather than a destination. Leadership isn’t about certainty, I thnk it’s about courage, openness, and a willingness to evolve.
Change is always within reach
Katleen Vanacker ©
If your team observed you for a week, would they believe you are serious about your goals and theirs? Would they see discipline, focus, and consistency? Or would they see distraction, delay, and lost momentum?
As a leader, you don’t have to tell people what matters to you. Your daily actions already set the tone for the culture, pace, and performance of the team. Lead in a way that makes commitment visible and watch it inspire the same in others.
It's complicated
Transforming entrenched cultural systems takes time and sustained commitment as they do not shift easily or quickly. True value often arises from scarcity; when something becomes widespread, its strategic significance tends to diminish. Leaders must ask: where are the real constraints, and how can we create value within them?
I think one should strive to be the kind of leader whose presence elevates the work, someone whose absence would be deeply felt. Bring emotional intelligence, critical insight, and seasoned judgment to every interaction. This is not about shortcuts; it’s about pursuing meaningful, lasting impact. If you are seeking an accountability or progression partner for your leadership journey, feel free to reach out via email.
More speed less haste
Most of what people are rushing to do isn’t actually urgent. And in today’s fast-moving environment, urgency can feel like the default setting. As a leader, your power lies not in keeping up with everything, but in your ability to slow down and think clearly when everything around you is speeding up. This is where emotional intelligence (EQ) becomes critical.
““You should meditate every day and if you don’t have time, you should meditate more.” ”