From Newsweek · · 2m
Leaders have influence but lack purpose
The leadership industry measures what leaders accumulate, not what improves because they lead.
In brief
The leadership industry measures what leaders accumulate, not what improves because they lead. Purposeful leadership requires clarity about what you're trying to change, responsibility for decisions that ripple through organizations, and actions that match your stated values. Originally reported by Newsweek.
Influence without purpose
The leadership industry has mastered influence but hasn't answered the crucial question: influence for what? We measure what leaders accumulate, not what improves because they lead.
“influence for what?”
Engagement crisis despite abundance
Only 20 percent of employees were engaged at work in 2025, with productivity loss estimated at 10 trillion dollars globally. Manager engagement fell sharply too.
When metrics become the mission
Businesses need revenue and margins, but the mistake comes when the metric becomes the mission. External goals tell you if you're moving; internal purpose tells you if you're moving in the right direction.
AI demands human judgment
Artificial intelligence is accelerating work at unprecedented speed, but it cannot replace human judgment. It cannot decide who may be harmed by a decision or what kind of organization we want to build.
Purpose has measurable consequences
U.S. employees with a strong sense of purpose at work were 5.6 times as likely to be engaged as those with low purpose. Purposeful leadership marries internal intention with external goals.
Three requirements for purpose
Clarity: know what you're trying to change. Responsibility: understand that every decision reaches employees, families, customers, and communities. Action: purpose means nothing if it never changes behavior.
Leaders must reach the frontline
The strongest leaders make themselves available to frontline staff, asking what they need and what's getting in their way. Communication silos destroy organizations; leadership should make information travel, not hierarchy harden.
“The strongest leaders I know make themselves available to the frontline.”
Managed versus trusted
A leadership culture driven by ego and metrics produces people who feel managed but not trusted. A culture grounded in purpose produces people confident enough to take calculated risks and connected to their work's value.
Reframe the leadership question
Stop asking how successful you can become. Ask instead: as a leader, how can I create natural success through self-motivated people? Measure success by what people become capable of because you led them.
Here's the gist
Purposeful leadership requires clarity about what you're trying to change, responsibility for decisions that ripple through organizations, and actions that match your stated values.
