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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and goal achieving.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host

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<v Speaker 1>Paul Fellavaliedo.

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<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>It's episode seven point thirty seven. Today, I want to

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<v Speaker 2>talk about a place where leadership is truly measured. It

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<v Speaker 2>is not in the conference room. It's not during the

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<v Speaker 2>annual awards banquet. It's not when everything is running smoothly

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<v Speaker 2>and everyone is smiling. Leadership is measured at the edge.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge is where things start to get uncomfortable. The

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<v Speaker 2>edge is where certainty disappears. The edge is where your values, decisions,

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<v Speaker 2>and character get tested. Anybody can lead when the weather

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<v Speaker 2>is perfect. Anybody can lead when the revenue is up,

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<v Speaker 2>staffing is full, and the team is winning. Leadership becomes

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<v Speaker 2>visible when things move to the edge. Think about a pilot.

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<v Speaker 2>A pilot's skills are not measured on a clear day

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<v Speaker 2>with calm winds and perfect visibility. The real test happens

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<v Speaker 2>when weather rolls in systems start flashing warnings and decisions

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<v Speaker 2>must be made quickly. The same thing happens in leadership.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge is where your report card gets written. The

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<v Speaker 2>edge might be the employee who suddenly quits. The edge

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<v Speaker 2>might be the customer who publicly attacks your company online.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge might be the budget cut that forces difficult decisions.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge might be a crisis nobody saw coming. The

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<v Speaker 2>edge might be a mistake that you made. That last

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<v Speaker 2>one is important. Many leaders think the edge only shows

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<v Speaker 2>up because of external circumstances. Sometimes the edge shows up

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<v Speaker 2>because of us, a bad decision, a missed opportunity, a

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<v Speaker 2>moment where we failed to communicate, or a situation we

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<v Speaker 2>ignored for too long. Leadership is not measured by whether

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<v Speaker 2>you avoid the edge. Leadership is measured by how you

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<v Speaker 2>respond when you get there. I learned this lesson in

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<v Speaker 2>emergency services. You can train people for years. You can

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<v Speaker 2>conduct drills, write policies, build checklists, and then one day,

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<v Speaker 2>something completely unexpected happens. In that moment, nobody cares what

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<v Speaker 2>your intentions were. Nobody cares what you planned to do.

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<v Speaker 2>People pay attention to what you actually do. That is

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<v Speaker 2>the edge. The edge strips away excuses, reveals preparation, reveals character,

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<v Speaker 2>and the edge reveals priorities. I've seen people with impressive

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<v Speaker 2>titles struggle at the edge. I've also seen people with

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<v Speaker 2>no title become extraordinary leaders at the edge because leadership

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<v Speaker 2>is not about rank. It is about response. And here's

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<v Speaker 2>an interesting exercise. Think about the leaders you admire most.

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<v Speaker 2>Not the famous leaders, not the leaders with best selling books,

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<v Speaker 2>the leaders you personally know, the ones you trust, the

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<v Speaker 2>one who influenced your life. Why do you admire them?

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<v Speaker 2>My guess is that you're not remembering a routine Tuesday afternoon.

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<v Speaker 2>You're remembering a difficult moment. You're remembering how they handled pressure,

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<v Speaker 2>how they treated people during uncertainty, or how they responded

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<v Speaker 2>when everyone else was losing their composure. We remember leaders

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<v Speaker 2>at the edge. Years ago, I heard someone say that

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<v Speaker 2>crisis does not build character, it reveals character. I think

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<v Speaker 2>the same applies to leadership. The edge reveals what was

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<v Speaker 2>already there. If you have built trust for years, the

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<v Speaker 2>edge reveals it. If you've developed competence for years, the

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<v Speaker 2>edge of reveal If you have invested in relationships, the

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<v Speaker 2>edge reveals it. And if you've avoided difficult conversations for years,

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<v Speaker 2>the edge reveals that too. The edge is honest. It

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<v Speaker 2>does not care about your job title. It doesn't care

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<v Speaker 2>about your organizational chart. It does not care about your

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<v Speaker 2>office size. The edge reveals reality. That's why great leaders

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<v Speaker 2>prepare before they arrive there. They understand that the edge

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<v Speaker 2>is coming, not because they're pessimistic, because they're realistic. Every

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<v Speaker 2>organization eventually reaches an edge, every team reaches an edge,

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<v Speaker 2>every leader reaches an edge. The question is not whether

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<v Speaker 2>it will happen. The question is The question is whether

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<v Speaker 2>you'll be ready for it. One of the biggest mistakes

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<v Speaker 2>leaders make is preparing only for success. They build plans

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<v Speaker 2>for growth, they build plans for expansion, They build plans

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<v Speaker 2>for best case scenarios. Great leaders also prepare for the

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<v Speaker 2>uncomfortable scenarios. What happens if your best employee leaves, if

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<v Speaker 2>funding disappears, if technology fails, if public perception changes overnight.

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<v Speaker 2>What happens if you are suddenly operating with half the

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<v Speaker 2>resources you expected. Those questions are not negative. Those questions

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<v Speaker 2>are leadership preparation, because preparation creates confidence, and confidence creates stability,

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<v Speaker 2>and stability becomes contagious when everyone around you is nervous.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge is where people look for signals. Your employees

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<v Speaker 2>are watching, your customers are watching, the community is watching,

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<v Speaker 2>your family is watching. People are asking one question, how

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<v Speaker 2>is this leader responding. Notice they're not asking how the

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<v Speaker 2>leader feels. They're not asking whether the leader wishes what

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<v Speaker 2>the leader wishes would happen. They're watching behavior. At the edge,

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<v Speaker 2>behavior becomes leadership. I often teach that culture is shaped

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<v Speaker 2>by what leaders taller. The edge takes that idea even further.

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<v Speaker 2>The edge reveals what leaders truly believe. Do you believe

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<v Speaker 2>in accountability because the edge will test it. Do you

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<v Speaker 2>believe in honesty? The edge will test it? Do you

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<v Speaker 2>believe in putting people first? Yes, the edge will test it.

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<v Speaker 2>And do you believe in maintaining standards? The edge will

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<v Speaker 2>test it. The edge is the final exam. And here's

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<v Speaker 2>the encouraging part. You do not need to fear the edge.

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<v Speaker 2>You need to prepare for it. Every difficult conversation you

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<v Speaker 2>have today prepares you for the edge. Every skill you

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<v Speaker 2>develop prepares you for the edge. Every lesson you learn

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<v Speaker 2>prepares you for the edge, and every mistake you own

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<v Speaker 2>prepares you for the edge. Leadership is not built during

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<v Speaker 2>the crisis. It's built before the crisis and revealed during

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<v Speaker 2>the crisis. The leaders who thrive at the edge are

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<v Speaker 2>usually not the smartest people in the room. They're the

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<v Speaker 2>most prepared. They've done the work long before the spotlight arrived,

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<v Speaker 2>and when the edge finally appears, they don't need to

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<v Speaker 2>become someone different. They simply reveal who they already are.

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<v Speaker 2>So as you move through your day today, ask yourself

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<v Speaker 2>one question. If my team, organization, or family suddenly reached

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<v Speaker 2>the edge tomorrow, what would my response reveal about me

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<v Speaker 2>as a leader? The answer to that question may tell

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<v Speaker 2>you exactly what you need to work on next, because

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<v Speaker 2>leadership is not measured when conditions are perfect. Leadership is

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<v Speaker 2>measured at the edge. This has been the seven Minute

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<v Speaker 2>Leadership Podcast, and I thank you for listening.

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<v Speaker 1>For more, Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.