~4 min read

The Problem: Many leaders believe strong results come from consistency in how people work. Same process. Same style. Same playbook. When outcomes matter, uniformity can feel safer than difference.

The Confusion: High performance often gets mistaken for similarity. When someone succeeds differently than we do, it’s easy to view that difference as something to fix rather than something to understand.

The Stakes: When leaders try to mold everyone into one “right” way of working, they don’t just limit individual potential — they narrow their own leadership growth. Over time, this leads to disengagement, missed strengths, and teams that underperform despite strong talent.

Promise: The strongest leaders don’t create replicas of themselves. They build systems where different strengths can thrive — and in the process, they become more complete leaders themselves.

Learning This the Hard Way

Early in my leadership career, I learned that getting results doesn’t mean everyone has to work the same way.
The person in a photo I still keep nearby helped teach me that lesson.

When we first worked together, it was clear early on that we approached the job differently — even though the outcomes were strong.

He was talented, driven, and consistently successful.
His style just didn’t mirror mine.

Where I was structured, he was fluid.
Where I valued precision, he trusted momentum.
Where I leaned on plans, he leaned on instinct.

At the time, I didn’t fully understand what I was seeing.

I interpreted difference as deviation.

What I Didn’t Understand Yet

What I didn’t understand back then was simple — but critical:

Those differences weren’t something to correct.
They were something to learn from.

Early in my leadership journey, I hadn’t yet learned how to fully appreciate and lead across different working styles. I was still figuring out what kind of leader I wanted to become.

So I defaulted to what felt familiar.

Over time, though, something shifted.

The Adjustment That Changed Everything

I stopped trying to shape how he worked.
I started asking better questions.
I focused on outcomes instead of sameness.

As that shift happened, the relationship deepened.
Trust grew.
And his performance continued to speak for itself.

Years passed. Careers moved on. We went our separate ways.

But the lesson stayed with me.

A Different Chapter, A Clearer Perspective

Later, in a completely different chapter of my career, I found myself building a new team at a new company. As I thought carefully about what I truly needed in a successful AE, I realized it wasn’t just skills or experience.

It was how someone shows up.
How they adapt.
How they deliver.

And that’s when his face came to mind.

I paused.

I remembered the results.
I remembered how much I had learned from working alongside him.
And I remembered how that experience had shaped me as a leader.

So I gave him a call.

What the Best Leaders Understand

The best leaders:

Aren’t shaped only by books or frameworks.
They’re shaped by the people they’re lucky enough to lead alongside.
Don’t build teams where everyone works the same way.
They build teams where great people can do their best work — in their own style.

Leadership Growth Shows Up Over Time

Today, he’s on my team again.

He’s thriving.
Exceeding his goals.
And serving as a constant reminder that leadership growth isn’t theoretical.

It shows up over time — through real people and real relationships.

Not through perfection.
Not through control.
But through learning.

Two Questions Worth Sitting With

If you lead a team, it’s worth asking yourself:

Am I building a system that rewards one “right” way to sell — or a system that helps different strengths win?
Am I trying to shape people into my image — or letting great people expand how I lead?

Answering those questions honestly — and accepting where you are and where you need to change — is where real leadership growth happens.

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