"All leadership sucks. But some of it is useful."

I saw a post on LinkedIn that got under my skin.

It was a takedown of low-trust leadership. It said things like:

“Leaders say they hire the best people, then treat them like babies.”
“They demand accountability while offering no freedom.”
“They need to plan every minute of your day, because left alone, you’d refactor the whole company into the ground.”

At first, I gave a knowing smile, after all, I’ve read the systems thinking books. I, too, am skeptical of performance management. I value autonomy and trust. I’m not one of those leaders!

But then it hit me:
I am a leader in an environment with performance management.
I do talk about accountability and ownership.
So… does that mean I suck?

Suddenly I wasn’t so smug.
I felt judged.
I felt the need to defend.

And that’s when I realised:
That’s exactly the trap Ralph Stacey warns about.

The moment we position ourselves outside the system, pointing fingers at those doing it wrong, we’re already missing the point.

Because here’s the thing:

All leadership sucks. But some of it is useful.

It’s all flawed.
It’s all an attempt to create order in a world that resists it.
But some of it helps us move forward, together, even if it’s messy, inconsistent, or incomplete.

The question isn’t, “Am I the good kind of leader?”​
The question is, “Am I willing to stay in the discomfort of leading without pretending I’ve got it figured out?”

Until next time,
Dermot
The Messy Middle

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