Where have All the Leaders Gone?

Very early in my career, I reported to a CEO who set a standard I’ve rarely seen matched since. He ran a manufacturing facility and he knew every single person by name. He’d sit in the cafeteria at lunch, not to be seen, but because he genuinely wanted to connect.

He was present. Curious. Authentic. Inspirational. A Visionary. He made people feel seen, valued, and counted. His door was always open and there was no situation he’d sidestep.

He faced everything, the hard conversations, the uncertainty, the pressure with humanity, fairness, and quiet elegance.

He did this long before emotional intelligence had a name in the corporate world.

People didn’t just respect him. They were loyal to him. He inspired an entire workforce to push toward something together, not because they had to, but because they wanted to. We were a team. We belonged.

That kind of leadership is rare now. And that genuinely saddens me.

Although there are some true leaders still out there, what I’ve seen instead, more often than not, is this:

Ivory tower decision-making, disconnected from the reality of the people executing the vision. Very controlled face time with the workforce beyond their direct reports. Change pushed without context or buy-in. People treated as assets, until numbers shift. Creativity standardized out of existence. Tenure, likability, and expertise mistaken for leadership capability. Confusing speed for strategy and motion for momentum.

On the human side? Executives who somewhere along the way lost themselves in the pressure and convinced themselves they’re doing the best they can.

Some are, but best isn’t always good enough when people’s confidence, careers, and wellbeing are on the line.

The result is predictable: disengagement, friction, burnout, and talent walking out the door carrying potential the organization will never recover.

I know this to be true:

The recipe my first CEO used wasn’t soft. It was strategic. 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁, 𝗽𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲𝘁𝘆, 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆. That combination doesn’t just feel good. It builds teams that perform, cultures that last, and results no quarterly target can manufacture.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻.

And uncommon is exactly where the opportunity lives.

𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚? I’d love to hear it.

The leaders who leave a lasting mark are those who are most self-aware. If you’re curious about your own emotional intelligence and where it might be quietly limiting or elevating your leadership, let’s connect.