Leadership isn't a promotion. It's a practice (and most people still get it backwards). - London Business News | Londonlovesbusiness.com

"Because leadership today is no longer something you get. It is something you do, repeatedly, consciously, and it is often uncomfortable. Too many people still confuse leadership with promotion. A bigger role. A larger team. A seat at the table. Yet the most consistent leadership failures I observe have little to do with competence, and everything to do with behaviour."

"Drawing on the framework I explored in The Financial Times Guide to Leadership (December 2025, Pearson), four elements matter more than ever: self-awareness, credibility, influence, and execution. None of them are granted by hierarchy. All of them are earned daily, through decisions, behaviours, and yes, failures. From hierarchy to behaviour The shift is already underway. Leadership is moving decisively away from command-and-control models toward something both simpler and more demanding: clarity, trust, and consistency of behaviour."

"In practice, this means leaders must spend less time directing and more time observing. Observation is fast becoming a defining leadership skill. The ability to make sense of complexity, detect weak signals, and connect dots across disciplines is what allows leaders to create meaning in noisy environments. The best leaders I have seen are disciplined learners. They read widely, far beyond their technical domains. They invest time in understanding neuroscience, technology, history, and culture."

Leadership now functions as an ongoing practice centered on behaviour rather than an earned position. Four core elements determine modern leadership effectiveness: self-awareness, credibility, influence, and execution. Hierarchy can open doors but does not confer these elements; they must be developed daily through decisions, behaviours, and learning from failures. Leaders must prioritize observation over direction, interpreting complexity, detecting weak signals, and connecting cross-disciplinary dots to create meaning. Discipline in continual learning across neuroscience, technology, history, and culture strengthens sensemaking. Effective leadership emphasizes clarity, trust, and consistent behaviour over command-and-control approaches.

Read at London Business News | Londonlovesbusiness.com