Why Is Leadership Dead?

Our world is starving for real leadership. Yes, we see people with impressive titles and advanced degrees, but how many of them are actual leaders? Sadly, true leadership feels like a relic of the past, replaced by individuals obsessed with themselves, not their teams. In today’s world, leadership, as we once knew it, is dead.

The Fall of Leadership

Why has leadership died? Look around. The turmoil we see isn’t the result of one administration, event, or trend—it’s the culmination of decades of decaying leadership. Once, leadership was prevalent across all walks of life, from government to private businesses. Today, despite the millions spent on leadership development and the flood of best-selling books on the topic, genuine leadership is nowhere to be found.

Why? Because we’ve shifted from a focus on leading others to a focus on serving ourselves. Enter “selfship.”

The Rise of Selfship

At its core, leadership is about influencing others—not through power or position, but through character. It starts with leading yourself well, but the ultimate goal is to serve and uplift others. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, this inward focus on personal growth took a wrong turn. Self-mastery became about self-interest. What should have been the foundation of outward, people-focused leadership became an excuse to serve personal goals. This shift from "leadership" to "selfship" marks the death of leadership as we knew it.

"You’re not a leader if you put your self-interests above the interests of others."

True leadership means putting others first. It’s about developing yourself so you can better serve those around you. Leaders who practice “selfship” don’t care about the well-being of their teams—they care about what their teams can do for them.

An example: My wife worked for a man who was born into wealth and ran his business with one goal—to squeeze every ounce of work from his employees. He saw them as “workhorses” to be driven until they dropped. He called himself a leader, but his actions said otherwise. True leaders don’t exploit their teams for personal gain. They understand that when their team thrives, so does their business.

The “Me-First” Culture

This focus on self is part of a much larger issue. Our culture today is so consumed with individual success that we routinely overlook the needs, struggles, and aspirations of others. In many cases, we do it intentionally. The mindset of "I'm going to get mine" has become so pervasive that selfishness is now the norm.

Don't believe it? Just look at the unprecedented profits being made by certain billionaires and corporations, while the average person is forced to work multiple jobs just to make ends meet. This isn’t inflation—it’s exploitation, driven by a lack of leadership and a disregard for the well-being of others.

Leaders vs. Budget Managers

"Leaders understand the real value of their employees as individuals."

One of the biggest signs of the leadership vacuum is the rise of the "budget-first" mindset. Somewhere along the way, many organizations began managing budgets instead of leading people. Here's the problem: You can’t lead a budget. You manage it. You lead people.

When leaders prioritize the bottom line over their employees, they’re missing the point. True leadership involves equipping and empowering people to grow. It’s an investment. And like any investment, you get out of it what you put in. Too often, executives would rather spend thousands on the latest gadget for the office than invest in developing their employees’ potential. This short-term thinking stifles innovation and limits the organization’s growth.

The True Essence of Leadership

"Leaders are always focused on providing value for and improving the quality of those around them."

Leadership, at its core, is about serving others. It’s about lifting people up, helping them grow, and empowering them to succeed—even if that success means moving on to other opportunities. The selfship mentality, focused on personal advancement at the expense of others, is a complete betrayal of these principles.

Leadership has died because too many have replaced it with a focus on what’s best for them—what boosts their position and profits them personally. But true leadership is not about self-interest. It’s about character, moral development, and, most importantly, service to others.

Until we return to these core values, leadership will remain dead, replaced by hollow, self-serving versions of what leadership once stood for. It’s time to resurrect leadership from the ashes of selfship, and once again, put the focus on the people who need it most.

If you’re looking to significantly improve and transform your business culture into one that will drive unprecedented growth, I’d love to have a complimentary and confidential meeting with you. We can discuss your goals and the challenges that you are faced with. Even if you decide that I can’t help your business, there’s no obligation or cost - so you have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain!

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Until next week....