Leadership Parable

If you are too calculated, you miss the chance to be authentic — and authenticity is one of a leader’s most durable assets.

Two decades ago, I was in my New York office while a trader spoke with a colleague about an assignment the firm had proposed. I didn’t know him well, but we ended up talking through the options and the possible outcomes. I wasn’t trying to influence him or manage the moment; I simply offered my perspective. What followed wasn’t because of me, but the experience that unfolded made his life — and his family’s life — richer and more successful. At the time, I was not thinking about a result, I was just being authentic.

Twenty years later, I hung up the phone after reminiscing with that same gentleman about our careers, our families, and the paths that brought us to this point. He had reached out to tell me that I had been a positive influence many years ago. He has three daughters as do I, all flourishing in ways different from our own. What struck me most was his acknowledgment: authenticity leaves a trail. No transaction, no agenda, no immediate payoff,  just a human moment that helped accelerate a path already chosen.

The leadership takeaway is simple: bring your authentic self. Influence built on sincerity lasts longer than if built on strategy. The reward appears much later — at the end of the play — but that’s what makes the best stories, their impact reveals itself at the end.

Thanks for letting me know.