Most new leaders want training that jumps straight to the action:
- How to run a meeting
- How to give feedback
- How to set goals your team won’t immediately forget
And sure—those are important. But if you’re training leaders without helping them understand why they want to lead in the first place, you’re skipping the part where it actually becomes meaningful.
That’s not fluff. That’s neuroscience, psychology, and about two decades of hard-earned experience in leadership development.
Before someone can lead a team with clarity and conviction, they have to start with introspection. They need to understand what motivates them, what they stand for, and what kind of impact they want to have. This kind of self-awareness isn’t optional—it’s foundational.
As Start with Why author Simon Sinek puts it:
“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.”
And your staff? They don’t follow job titles. They follow clarity. Purpose. Consistency. A leader who knows who they are and what they believe tends to create a workplace where others can do the same.
At the Leadership Progress Cycle (LPC), we begin with this exact process:
We help new leaders explore the experiences that shaped them. We prompt them to articulate the reasons they stepped into leadership in the first place. We create space to reflect on past mentors and role models—not just to admire them, but to recognize the values they want to carry forward.
That purpose becomes a north star for everything that follows.
Leaders who skip this step often struggle in predictable ways:
- They mirror others instead of finding their own voice
- They waffle when decisions get tough
- Their teams sense inconsistency or unclear expectations
Leaders who don’t skip it, on the other hand?
- Communicate more clearly and persuasively
- Set goals that actually inspire buy-in
- Build stronger, more accountable teams
And because purpose is personal, it’s also powerful. One LPC participant summed it up this way:
“This training has helped me reframe what responsibilities to take on myself and which to share with my team. As I've shared more responsibility, it's created better outcomes as well as a better conversation within the team.”
So if you’re in charge of helping your leaders grow, make sure they start at the beginning—not the middle.
Because purpose isn’t a luxury. It’s the foundation.
Want to see how we help leaders discover and act on their purpose?
👉 Set up a free trial and experience the LPC difference firsthand.
