Leadership = Influence + Accountability

My son learned a hard lesson this week. And honestly? It’s one that many leaders struggle with.

His teacher reached out to say he was disrupting class—being loud, tilting his desk, distracting others. When the teachers walked away, his group followed his lead.

When I confronted him, he admitted it. But taking real accountability? That’s harder.

I told him he needed to stand up and apologize—not just to the teacher, but to his classmates. They were the ones he had disrespected. He stole their learning time. He set the wrong example.

He wasn’t happy about it. He wanted to soften the impact. Make it less painful. (Sound familiar?)

But leadership isn’t just about influence. It’s about responsibility.

Here’s the business lesson:

🚨 People take cues from you—whether you intend them to or not.

• If you roll your eyes in a meeting, your team will too.

• If you dismiss an idea publicly, others will hesitate to speak up.

• If you cut corners, don’t be surprised when your team does the same.

🚨 Apologizing in private is easy. Owning it publicly builds trust.

• A quiet “my bad” in a 1:1 won’t undo a mistake made in front of the team.

• If a leader shuts down an idea and later realizes they were wrong, they should acknowledge it out loud.

• If a company missteps, a vague memo won’t repair trust. Real accountability is public.

🚨 Culture is built in the small moments.

• My son’s teacher didn’t shame him. She corrected him privately but held the boundary firmly.

• That’s leadership. Culture isn’t set in big meetings—it’s shaped in everyday interactions.

The Hardest Leadership Question:

When you look at your team, ask yourself:
👉 Are they following your lead in the right direction? Or are they picking up your bad habits?

That’s the difference between holding a title and actually leading.