Speaker 1: Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of
Speaker 1: performance through strong human relations, team building, and golachieving. This
Speaker 1: is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul
Speaker 1: Fello Aledo.
Speaker 2: Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.
Speaker 2: It's episode five twenty five. I just released the Leader's
Speaker 2: Book of Secrets a few weeks ago, and for this episode,
Speaker 2: I'm going to go even deeper. Today's episode is titled
Speaker 2: The Dark Truth about Leadership, and I'm going to warn
Speaker 2: you right now what I'm about to share with you
Speaker 2: may make you uncomfortable. It may rattle the way you've
Speaker 2: been taught to think about leadership. But that's the point.
Speaker 2: The real truths about leadership are rarely talked about, and
Speaker 2: they're not written in the glossy books on the front
Speaker 2: table at the airport bookstore. So let's get right into it.
Speaker 2: Truth Number one, Leadership will cost you relationships. Everyone says
Speaker 2: leadership is about building teams, creating connection, and inspiring people.
Speaker 2: That's only half the story. The darker side is this
Speaker 2: leadership will cost you friendships, allies, and sometimes even family.
Speaker 2: The higher you go, the fewer people you can truly
Speaker 2: confide in. Not because you don't want to, but because
Speaker 2: the weight of your responsibility separates you, leaders who try
Speaker 2: to keep everyone close usually end up getting betrayed or burned.
Speaker 2: It's lonely at the top for a reason. Truth number two.
Speaker 2: Your team talks about you behind your back. You can
Speaker 2: be the kindest, most generous, most approachable leader, but here's
Speaker 2: the truth. Your people talk about you when you leave
Speaker 2: the room. They pick apart your decisions, your tone, your expressions,
Speaker 2: even your email punctuation. They judge you constantly. Leadership means
Speaker 2: being dissected every single day. And here's the kicker, you'll
Speaker 2: never really know what they think. At best, you'll only
Speaker 2: hear ten percent of it. The other ninety percent floats
Speaker 2: and whispers, text threads and side conversations. You'll never be
Speaker 2: invited into. Truth number three. People don't want change, even
Speaker 2: when they say they do. You'll hear employees say we
Speaker 2: want innovation, we want progress, we want a better culture.
Speaker 2: But here's the dark reality. Most people want the idea
Speaker 2: of change, not the disruption that comes with it. The
Speaker 2: second you start shaking up processes, holding people accountable, or
Speaker 2: removing toxic employees, the very same people who begged you
Speaker 2: for change will resist you. Leadership means being hated for
Speaker 2: delivering exactly what people asked for. In truth number four,
Speaker 2: success doesn't guarantee loyalty. You can double the company's revenue,
Speaker 2: you can win national awards, you can put food on
Speaker 2: people's tables. In the minute you make one unpopular decision,
Speaker 2: you'll still have people turn on you. Success doesn't buy loyalty,
Speaker 2: It buys expectation. In the second you stop delivering, people
Speaker 2: forget what you did yesterday. Leadership is a true readmill.
Speaker 2: The moment you step off, they forget you are the
Speaker 2: one keeping it moving. In truth number five, most leaders
Speaker 2: fail quietly. Here's the truth no one tells you. Most
Speaker 2: leaders don't fail in a public scandal, a news story,
Speaker 2: or even a resignation letter. They fail quietly, one compromise
Speaker 2: at a time, one ignored red flag, one avoided tough conversation,
Speaker 2: one small lie. They tell themselves that things will fix themselves,
Speaker 2: and by the time they realize they've failed, it's too late.
Speaker 2: The organization has rotted from the inside out, and the
Speaker 2: leader is just the last one to admit it. Truth
Speaker 2: number six. The higher you climb, the more you become
Speaker 2: a target. At some point, Your job isn't to lead anymore,
Speaker 2: it's to survive. Every promotion you take makes you more
Speaker 2: of a target. Every title you add puts a bigger
Speaker 2: bullseye on your back. People will root for your downfall,
Speaker 2: sometimes from inside your own team. Jealousy isn't talked about
Speaker 2: in leadership circles, but it's real when you're in the spotlight.
Speaker 2: People want to see if you'll crack under the heat.
Speaker 2: Truth Number seven. Leaders don't get to have bad days.
Speaker 2: And this is the cruelest truth of all. Leaders don't
Speaker 2: get the luxury of bad days. You can't come in tired, angry,
Speaker 2: or broken without it affecting your entire team. Your people
Speaker 2: don't see you as human. They see you as the standard,
Speaker 2: and if you show cracks, they assume the foundation is crumbling.
Speaker 2: The dark truth. Sometimes leadership means lying with a smile
Speaker 2: on your face, even when your own world is on fire. Now,
Speaker 2: I know this all sounds harsh, but here's why I'm
Speaker 2: telling you this. Because leadership isn't about perks, titles, or power.
Speaker 2: Leadership is about sacrifice. It's about standing in the fire,
Speaker 2: knowing you will get burned, and still showing up anyway.
Speaker 2: So the greatest leaders aren't the ones who avoid these
Speaker 2: dark truths. They're the ones who accept them, embrace them,
Speaker 2: and still say this is the path I choose. So
Speaker 2: the next time you think leadership is glamorous, remember this episode.
Speaker 2: The reality is darker, heavier, and lonelier than most people
Speaker 2: can handle. And if you're still willing to lead after
Speaker 2: hearing this, then you're the kind of leader the world
Speaker 2: actually needs. This has been the seven Minute Leadership Podcast,
Speaker 2: and I thank you for listening.
Speaker 1: For more Paul Fell of Aledo Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot
Speaker 1: com