My bookcase is full of leadership books. And I’m one of thousands (if not millions) of leadership coaches. How can it be that in a world saturated with leadership advice, so few true leaders seem to stand tall? Something deeper is broken, something we can't fix with another flashy seminar or motivational speech.

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Leadership — true leadership — isn’t dead. But it sure is gasping for breath.

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We live in a paradox. Never before in history have we had so many people claiming to develop leaders. Consultants, trainers, professors, coaches — all offering books, webinars, TED Talks, retreats atop mountains — all promising to unlock some secret formula. And yet, look around. Our institutions are fragile, trust is at historic lows, and people feel unmoored, craving a steadiness that seems harder to find each year.

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If leadership development is booming, why is leadership itself struggling? It’s tempting to blame the consultants — to say their methods are wrong, their theories too academic, their workshops too superficial. Some of that critique holds water. We’ve built a cottage industry on models and frameworks, often forgetting that leadership is a profoundly human endeavor, not a checklist to complete.

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But it’s bigger than that.

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We also have to look inward — at the systems and cultures that shape us long before a consultant ever enters the picture. Education systems teach knowledge, but too rarely teach wisdom. Corporations reward short-term profits over long-term stewardship. Politics prizes winning over governing. Even families, often unintentionally, teach children to seek approval more than purpose. In short, we groom people to manage tasks, not to lead souls.

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True leadership asks something deeper. It demands courage to stand alone when necessary, humility to listen when uncomfortable, and integrity to stay the course when easier paths beckon. These are not competencies you can bullet-point onto a PowerPoint slide. They are forged in character.

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And character — well, character takes time, failure, and sometimes even heartbreak. That’s not a product many leadership developers are prepared to sell. It’s easier to market confidence tricks than to guide someone through the slow, often painful journey of becoming worthy of being followed.

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So is leadership dead? No. But it’s endangered — because we are trying to microwave a process that was always meant to be slow-cooked.

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What can be done?

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First, we need to stop treating leadership as a set of techniques and start treating it as a way of being. Leaders are not created in a weekend seminar. They are shaped over years, through crucible moments when their values are tested, and they must choose service over self.

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Second, we need to reimagine education — not just in schools, but in homes and communities. We need to teach young people not just how to win, but how to lose with grace. Not just how to succeed, but how to sacrifice. Not just how to speak, but how to listen with empathy and discipline.

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Third, consultants and trainers (and I say this with love for many good ones) need to have the courage to tell organizations the truth: you cannot “train” your way out of a leadership vacuum. You have to live your way out of it. You have to embed values, reward authenticity, and model the behaviors you claim to admire.

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Finally, and maybe most critically, we as individuals have to reclaim our own responsibility. Too often we say, “Where are the leaders?” as if leadership were someone else’s job. But every day, in every decision, in every conversation, we are either leading — or leaving a vacuum. Leadership isn’t a title bestowed; it’s a choice made, again and again, often in obscurity,without applause.

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In Hand on the Shoulder, I wrote about how leadership feels more like a quiet presence than a shouting voice. It’s that gentle hand guiding you when no one else sees. It’s about presence, not performance.

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Leadership isn't dead. It’s waiting — waiting for those willing to do the harder, slower, more human work of building something real.

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The question isn’t, “Where are the leaders?”

The question is, “Am I willing to become one?”

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We don't need another leadership seminar. We need leaders who will do the slow, quiet, courageous work of earning trust and shaping lives — starting with their own. The world is hungry for hands-on-the-shoulder leadership, the kind that steadies others when the winds howl. If we want a future worth building, it won't be built by titles or techniques. It will be built by human beings willing to lead when it’s hardest, not when it’s easiest. The question remains: Will we answer that call — or will we leave it for someone else?

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