Every time I write a new Zach on Leadership article, I think about making my content approachable for new readers, in anticipation that they will enjoy the content and become faithful community members. This article is going to be a little different. This is for the insiders. This is for the tribe. Whether you’ve been faithfully reading for years, or only a few weeks, this message is for you. I’m going to ask for your help, but before that, I’ll explain why.

Why does Zach on Leadership exist?

I started this blog about four and a half years ago. I launched it as a podcast a little over a year ago. Why did I do it and why do I continue on? It all started with stark realization: leadership matters.

“Everything rises and falls on leadership” – John Maxwell

I am very fortunate. Throughout my career, I’ve had great leaders pour into me. I’ve benefited greatly from it. Not only me, but I’ve seen organizations thrive under great leadership in good times and bad. For me, this has become a baseline expectation. This is how it should be everywhere.

The real world

Unfortunately, this experience is far from ubiquitous. Organizations struggle with leadership gaps and lapses. Faithful employees are squandered, and their growth is stunted. An entire generation hates going to work.

I’ve come to believe that this isn’t because leaders are outright malicious or self-centered. Few are. Leadership is a set of skills and habits. Many in leadership positions are doing the best they can. They often model the behavior that was exhibited to them. They do their best, but their best isn’t good enough. Now what?

The solution

Let me clarify. I am not a leadership expert. I am a leadership student. I am a leadership practitioner. I try. I fail. I learn. I get better. The cycle continues.

This cycle I’ve described can work well, but not in isolation.

“It’s lonely at the top”

Unless you do something to explicitly change it, as a leader you will be forced into isolation. Your team will do it to you. They don’t do it to be mean, or because they don’t like you, it’ll just happen. Furthermore, your leader peers aren’t much solace. By default, they become the competition for promotions, influence, resources, and power. You can overcome these dynamics, but it takes work. Out of the gate, you are all alone.

Leaders: everything you do matters, and you are all alone. Good luck with that.

Zach on Leadership is a community

On Zach on Leadership, I write stories. These stories are about my leadership experiences. I’ve come to learn that my experiences are quite common. We all face the same types of challenges. Being alone as a leader is a very bad thing.

This isn’t just a blog, but it is a community of leaders. This community is strong, but not as strong as it could be. I am a content creator. I am a conversation starter. I am a community leader. I have a role to play and I am playing it. However, you have a role in this too. You have a responsibility.

I write Zach on Leadership and distribute it freely. I’m among very few that create content without trying to sell you something. You don’t need to pay me back. You need to pay it forward.

Call to action:

Through the power of analytics, I know some things. I know that the vast majority of you read my articles and do nothing else. You are consumers, but not fully engaged community members. For this community to reach its potential, that must change. Here’s what I need you to do:

1. Like, comment, and share. You can do this on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Medium. This creates a powerful social network effect. I’m not asking you to do this because I want personal popularity. I believe these messages are inherently valuable, and they aren’t getting to people who need to read them. Be the one to pass it on. It’s a gift and you are asking nothing in return. This is easy.
2. Listen to my podcast and give it a rating and review. This has the same network effect.
3. Engage in the discussion. Tell your own related story. Disagree with me. Reply to other comments on the thread. As a fellow learner, I need to hear from you.
4. Reach out to people you know in real life and share a relevant article or episode with them. If you are a in conversation that reminds you of a past article, go find it, then share it with them.
5. I want you to think back to when you first joined this community. There was probably an article that struck a chord, and then you got hooked. Go to the search box on my website, find it, then share it.

The practice of leadership is critical, hard, and lonely. Recognizing the criticality, let’s make it easier and less lonely by building this community of leadership learners. We are in this together.

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