Leadership is a verb.
The other day, I was sitting with an executive team talking about bench strength and high-potential talent. Nothing unusual. A familiar conversation in a familiar setting.
But something landed differently.
As the discussion unfolded, I realized we were talking about leadership the same way most organizations do – as if leadership were a noun.
- A thing.
- A label.
- A set of characteristics we can list, debate, and categorize.
Directive leader. Participative leader. Bold leader. Considerate leader. Seasoned leader. Emerging leader…
…the list just keeps growing.
Leadership Is a Verb, Not a Noun
When we treat leadership as a noun, we feel compelled to define it the way nouns demand to be defined – as a person, place, or thing. Something concrete. Something describable. Something you either “have” or don’t.
The problem is leadership isn’t concrete. And trying to force it into that box actually makes it more confusing, not less.
Consider two wildly successful leaders: one calm and relational, the other intense and relentless. Different personalities. Different styles. Different ways of showing up. And yet, both achieve extraordinary results.
If leadership were truly a noun, this wouldn’t make sense.
From my vantage point, leadership works far better when you stop treating it like a thing and start treating it like what it actually is:
A verb.
Why Leadership Is About Movement
Verbs are action words. And that aligns perfectly with a leader’s real job.
Leadership is about movement.
A leader’s job is to move a person, a team, an organization, a conversation, or a customer from where they are to where they need to be.
That’s it.
When you view leadership this way, the obsession with style starts to fade. Whether you’re directive or participative, charismatic or reserved, isn’t really the point. The point is whether you can facilitate movement.
This is why I often say leaders need to stop muscling results and start facilitating movement.
Movement requires two things: a starting location and a desired destination. Without both, you have rudderless effort. With both, you have a journey.
That sounds a lot like growth.
Stop Asking What Kind of Leader You Are
Once leadership becomes a verb, the questions change.
You stop asking, “What kind of leader should I be?”
And you start asking, “What needs to move, and how do I intend to lead it?”
That’s a much better question.
It shifts leadership away from identity and back toward action. Away from labels and back toward leverage.
Leadership Development Changes When Leadership Becomes a Verb
This is the empowering part.
When leadership becomes a verb, development changes too.
You’re no longer chasing some idealized leadership type. You’re learning how to deliberately move things forward.
That shift creates something many leaders haven’t felt in a while:
Freedom.
Because leadership was never about becoming a particular type of person.
It was always about learning how to move people, priorities, and performance in the right direction.
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