I’ve been thinking a lot about the art of subtle leadership and how “subtle” is stronger than most people think. Sometimes when I introduce the concept, people think that being subtle is soft and weak, but nothing could be further from the truth.
Why do we keep getting this wrong?
I think it is because somewhere along the way, we accepted a couple of false truths:
- People, if left to their own devices, will lack the motivation, drive, and direction to get things done.
- Leaders need to be big, bold, and pushy in order to force people into action or do the right thing.
These are idiotic ways to look at the world, and I am sick and tired of seeing people think this way. When we buy into this bullshit, we move toward a very dystopian world where trust and teamwork are impossible, and seismic leadership starts to look like the only viable option.
Seismic leadership comes with a high cost. When we believe strength means force, we accidentally open the door to dictatorial leadership styles. We start rewarding the loudest person in the room and excusing behavior we’d never accept anywhere else. We also get stuck in a fix it fetish. Just look at our current political system in the US as an example. It’s creating a lot of noise and division; it is hurting people unnecessarily, and it isn’t producing much by way of results. It may look good to some on the surface, but ultimately it is just feeding egos.
I’m confident that very little of it will last, but let’s not get into a political or moral debate!
There’s another way to lead, and the evidence for it is stronger than you might think.
Why subtle leadership is stronger
When Jim Collins studied the companies that went from good to great, the leaders at the top weren’t the charismatic, larger-than-life personalities you’d expect. In Good to Great, he described them as:
“An individual who blends extreme personal humility with intense professional will.”
Collins noticed something else about these leaders. When things went well, they looked out the window and gave the credit to other people, or even to good luck. When things went poorly, they looked in the mirror and took responsibility themselves. The leaders of the comparison companies did the opposite, blaming outside forces when things went wrong and admiring themselves in the mirror when things went right. The great ones, Collins suggested, acted with quiet, calm determination.
That’s what subtle leadership looks like. Subtle doesn’t mean you lack conviction. It means you don’t need to make noise to act on it.
Subtle leaders tend to be simpler, steadier, earlier, and quieter, and each one makes them stronger.
Simpler: Herb Kelleher used to say he could teach anyone the secret of running Southwest Airlines in thirty seconds: “We are THE low-fare airline.” When someone suggested adding a chicken Caesar salad to the Houston-to-Las Vegas flight, the answer came from one question. Would it help Southwest stay the low-fare airline? If not, no salad. One simple idea let everyone make the same call he would, and resulted in greater buy-in.
Steadier: Researchers writing in the Academy of Management Journal found that people with unpredictable bosses felt more stress than those with consistently unfair bosses. As the lead researcher put it, “inconsistent treatment is much more stressful than being treated poorly all the time.” It turns out that showing up the same way every day steadies people. No one performs at their peak when they have to constantly brace themselves for whatever fleeting mood or energy you bring into the office.
Earlier: Have you ever heard of Toyota’s Andon Cord? It’s a tool on their production line that significantly improved quality and became part of the Toyota Production System. Here’s how it works. A simple cord runs throughout the production system and is always within reach of every worker. Anyone can pull that cord to note a problem in the system, and the first pull calls for help without stopping the line. If the team can’t fix it in time, the line stops. The Andon Cord is one reason Toyota became the benchmark for quality, and shows how we can maintain momentum while also addressing problems early.
Quieter: I’ve always been a fan of Nelson Mandela’s leadership. He was a man of integrity, dignity, and gravitas, and countless stories show how he handled resistance with class and poise. As a young man, he learned to listen to everyone before offering his own opinion, and this became a useful strategy he used throughout his life. One of my favorite stories is how he won over the men who guarded him.
On Robben Island, Mandela learned Afrikaans, the language of his jailers, and studied their history so he could understand them. He treated the guards with respect, and over time many of them came to respect him in return. Christo Brand was just 18 when he started guarding Mandela. Mandela encouraged him to keep up his education and took an interest in his family, and the two became friends. Years later, while South Africa’s new constitution was being drafted, Mandela insisted that Brand stand beside him for a group photo, telling him, “You must stand next to me; we belong together.” Brand later said, “He became my friend, and was also like a father to me.” Mandela never needed to raise his voice to win them over. He kept listening, and even some of the people holding him prisoner came to see him as a friend.
Here’s the subtle shift
Embrace the art of subtle leadership.
Seismic leaders might get a lot of attention, but Subtle leaders get results that stick!
If you want to build a team of leaders that people love to follow, I’d love to help. In 2027, I’m bringing my new program, The Art of Subtle Leadership, in-house to a limited number of organizations. It’s built for senior leaders who are tired of pushing harder and getting less, and you can run it as a three-day intensive or as twelve monthly sessions with your leadership team.
If that sounds like what your team needs, reply to this email with the word “subtle” and I’ll reach out to set up a conversation.
