What explains the pervasive gap between the leaders we need and the leaders we get?
As my brilliant friend Ron Carucci and I argue in our latest Harvard Business Review article, an overlooked answer to this question has to do with the difference between what leaders can do (their best self) and what they actually do (their ordinary self). Non-trivial sidenote: even when organizations ask leaders to “bring their whole self”, what they really mean (and hope) is that they bring their best self.
Thus, the key question for leaders is: how can you ensure that your best self is displayed and expressed as often as needed?
As we try illustrate, sustaining one’s best self is not a matter of willpower or charisma. It’s a discipline of awareness, intention, and continual reinvention.
The gap between who leaders are at their best and how they show up on an ordinary Tuesday is shaped by adaptations, triggered responses, and identity stories that can operate outside their awareness.
Ultimately, the leaders who sustain their best selves are the ones who have the courage to examine the habits that once protected them but now limit their impact, and who understand that they are always in the process of becoming (so they choose to participate consciously in that becoming).
Conversely, a leader who thinks they are a finished product is basically finished.
#bestself #authenticity #leadership #talent #work #performance #DBY #NYE #2026
