I’m feeling disheartened

I want to be honest. I’m feeling pretty disheartened about leadership in this country right now.

You’ll know if you’ve ever worked with me that I’m a firm believer that culture starts at the top.

So when I watch the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition shouting across the Commons, name calling, point scoring and their own benches jeering, gesticulating and generally being obnoxious, I can’t help thinking: is this really the example we want our country to follow?

When Kemi Badenoch took a personal swipe at Rachel Reeves after the budget, it didn’t feel like challenging ideas. It felt like proving who could land the sharpest dig.

Imagine that in your boardroom.

Someone proposes a direction for a project and instead of questioning the thinking, a senior leader goes in for a personal jab while their team laughs along.

We wouldn’t call that good leadership. We’d call it completely unacceptable.

Honestly, if my kids had behaved like that in the playground, they’d have been marched into the headteacher’s office and told to apologise properly.

And yet here we are, watching people who represent the nation model behaviour that would get a telling off anywhere else.

Here’s my worry. Poor behaviour that is tolerated at the top will always be repeated further down.

It’s something I see every day inside organisations.

If senior people interrupt, mock, blame or belittle, the rest of the business learns that respect is optional, curiosity is unnecessary and listening is only for the weak.

Is it any wonder we’re struggling with trust as a nation?

How many of us have sat in meetings that felt suspiciously like a mini Parliament? Defensive voices. Loudest person wins. Everyone performing for their own team. Nobody actually listening.

If you haven’t experienced that, well done, you’re a unicorn.

This is exactly why leadership matters. Not the title. Not the authority. The behaviour. Leadership is always teaching someone something, especially when you think no one is paying attention.

Next time you disagree, instead of proving your point, try asking one question:

What are you seeing that I might be missing?

It’s much harder than a quick eye roll, but it moves conversations forward instead of just making noise.

Thanks for letting me get that off my chest, it’s been bothering me.

Rock on.