Speaker 1: Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of
Speaker 1: performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalagiving. This
Speaker 1: is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellavaledo.
Speaker 2: Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.
Speaker 2: It's episode six sixty nine. Let me ask you something
Speaker 2: that most leaders avoid thinking about. Is your team loyal
Speaker 2: to you? Or are they loyal to the current version
Speaker 2: of you? Because those are two very different things. And
Speaker 2: here's where it gets real. Change exposes fake loyalty faster
Speaker 2: than anything else in leadership. New policies, new expectations, new direction,
Speaker 2: new pressure. That's when people decide if they're with you
Speaker 2: or if they were only comfortable with you. And if
Speaker 2: your leadership is built on comfort instead of trust, change
Speaker 2: will break it. So today we're going to talk about
Speaker 2: building loyalty that actually survives change. Not temporary buy in,
Speaker 2: not surface level agreement. Real loyalty the kind that holds
Speaker 2: when things shift, the kind that stays when things get uncomfortable,
Speaker 2: the kind that does not disappear the moment you make.
Speaker 1: A hard call.
Speaker 2: So let's start with a mistake I see leaders make
Speaker 2: all the time. They think loyalty is built during the
Speaker 2: good times and it's not good. Times create connection, They
Speaker 2: create energy, they create momentum. But loyalty is built in
Speaker 2: how you lead when things are unclear, when decisions are unpopular,
Speaker 2: and when pressure is high. Your team is always watching
Speaker 2: one thing. Do you stay consistent when it matters? Because
Speaker 2: consistency is what builds trust, and trust is what builds
Speaker 2: loyal If you are one version of a leader on
Speaker 2: Monday and a different version on Thursday, your team is
Speaker 2: not confused. They are calculating. They are asking themselves, can
Speaker 2: I rely on this person when things change? Here is
Speaker 2: the first move. If you want loyalty that survives change.
Speaker 2: Stop leading based on mood. Start leading based on standards.
Speaker 2: Your tone, your expectations, your follow through. It all needs
Speaker 2: to feel steady, not robotic, not rigid, steady because people
Speaker 2: can handle change. What they cannot handle is unpredictable leadership
Speaker 2: layered on top of change. Now let's go deeper. Loyalty
Speaker 2: is not built on what you say. It's built on
Speaker 2: what you allow. If you tolerate shortcuts, your team learns
Speaker 2: that standards are optional. If you tolerate disrespect, your team
Speaker 2: learns that culture is flexible. If you tolerate inconsistency. Your
Speaker 2: team learns that leadership is situational. In the moment change
Speaker 2: shows up, all of that gets exposed because now people
Speaker 2: are asking, why should I stay committed when the rules
Speaker 2: change depending on the day. So here is the second move.
Speaker 2: Lock in your non negotiables. Your standards cannot shift just
Speaker 2: because the situation does. When your team knows exactly where
Speaker 2: you stand, they can anchor themselves to that even when
Speaker 2: everything else is moving, and that creates stability, and stability
Speaker 2: creates loyalty. Now let's talk about communication. Most leaders think
Speaker 2: they communicate well. During change, they either overexplain or they disappear.
Speaker 2: Neither one builds loyalty. Your team does not need a speech.
Speaker 2: They need clarity. What is changing, why is it changing,
Speaker 2: what it means for them, and what is not changing.
Speaker 2: That last one is critical because during change, people are
Speaker 2: looking for something solid to hold on too. If everything
Speaker 2: feels up in the air, loyalty turns into self preservation,
Speaker 2: and self preservation kills team culture fast. So here is
Speaker 2: the third move. Communicate with clarity, not comfort. Do not
Speaker 2: soften the message to make it easier. Make it clear
Speaker 2: so people can move forward. Now here's where most leaders
Speaker 2: lose loyalty. They introduce change, and then they disappear from
Speaker 2: the impact of that change. They make the decision, but
Speaker 2: they are not present for the consequences, and your team
Speaker 2: sees that immediately. If you're going to lead change, you
Speaker 2: need to stand in it, be visible, be available, be accountable.
Speaker 2: Because loyalty is not built from the decision. It's built
Speaker 2: from how you carry the decision. And this is where
Speaker 2: red key leadership shows up. These are the moments that
Speaker 2: define you. Anyone can lead when things are smooth. Real
Speaker 2: leaders show up when things shift, when pressure rises, when
Speaker 2: people are uncertain. That is when your credibility is either
Speaker 2: built or broken. Let me give you a simple reality check.
Speaker 2: If your team only supports you when things are easy,
Speaker 2: you do not have loyalty. You have convenience, and convenience
Speaker 2: disappears the moment leadership gets hard. So here is the
Speaker 2: fourth move. Earn loyalty during the hard moments. Stay present,
Speaker 2: stay consistent, stay clear, do not rush through change, lead
Speaker 2: through it. Because your team is not measuring your strategy,
Speaker 2: they're measuring your behavior, and behavior is what people remember.
Speaker 2: So now let's bring this altogether. Loyalty that survives change
Speaker 2: is built on four things. Consistency in how you lead,
Speaker 2: standards that do not move, clarity in communication, in presence
Speaker 2: during the impact. If you get those right, your team
Speaker 2: will stay with you even when the road gets rough.
Speaker 2: If you get those wrong, your team will start planning
Speaker 2: their exit the moment things shift. And here's the final
Speaker 2: thought I want you to take with you today. Change
Speaker 2: is not what breaks teams. Unsteady leadership during change is
Speaker 2: what breaks teams. You cannot stop change. That's not your job.
Speaker 2: Your job is to lead in a way that people
Speaker 2: trust even when things are uncertain. That's how you build
Speaker 2: loyalty that lasts, not for today, not for the easy moments,
Speaker 2: but for the moments that actually define leadership. So here
Speaker 2: is your seven minute leadership challenge for today. Take a
Speaker 2: hard look at your leadership during the last major change
Speaker 2: your team experienced. Were you steady or were you reactive?
Speaker 2: Were you clear or were you vague? Were you present
Speaker 2: or were you distant? Your answers will tell you everything
Speaker 2: you need to know about the loyalty you're building right now.
Speaker 2: Fix what needs fixed, lock in your standards, and show
Speaker 2: up stronger for the next change that comes your way,
Speaker 2: because it is coming, and your team is already watching
Speaker 2: how you will lead it. This has been the seven
Speaker 2: minute Leadership Podcast, and I thank you for listening.
Speaker 1: For more Paul fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot
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