It's A Conspiracy

The Leadership Training Conspiracy

Get out your tinfoil hats and prepare for the biggest conspiracy of all time!

Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but hey, it's been going on for a very long time at least.

We have never had a time of more educated leaders than we do today, yet the need for great leadership is getting bigger. Since the pandemic, generational shifts in the workforce, now AI and the impending existential crisis, there is more on leaders today than ever before.

How can this be?

1. The leadership gap is widening, not reducing.
2. The percentage?of disengaged employees is increasing, not reducing
3. The percentage?of disengaged leaders is increasing, not reducing
4. The fear of displacement in the workforce is increasing, not reducing
5. Culture & engagement remain the No.1 key issue.

I could go on...what is clear is that there is a MASSIVE difference between knowing and doing!

All the studies...all the single studies...put your hands up, up in the club...(are you hearing Beyonce?)

Leadership Development Program Market Outlook from 2024 to 2034. The leadership development program market is expected to be valued at US$ 81.19 billion in 2024. The leadership development program is predicted to rise at an impressive CAGR of 10.3% from 2024 to 2034. The global market is anticipated to reach US$ 216.9 billion by 2034. - Future Market Insights

All the studies show big $$$'s being spent and little or no improvement.

Recent studies from Gallup have unveiled a shocking truth: the global cost of disengaged employees has skyrocketed to an eye-watering $8.8 trillion annually. That's not a typo — we're talking about a sum larger than the GDP of economic powerhouses like Japan or Germany. according to reports from Gallup, with just 33% of the employee workforce actively engaged . However, engagement rates further dropped to 30% in the first quarter of 2024 among both full- and part-time employees. This means that more than two-thirds of American workers are either not engaged or, worse, actively disengaged from their jobs.

These figures aren't just alarming; they're a testament to a widespread failure in how businesses approach their most valuable asset: their people. As a matter of fact one could quite easily argue that it is getting worse???

WTF?

The personal and organisational leadership development industry is well aware that most people who attend a course/seminar/workshop, watch an online course, read a book etc will barely implement one idea, or make one change. We are in a time of mass consumption of content creating more knowledgeable leaders. The content for the most part is great. Most of it is just a spin on what we've known for thousands of years. A new label, or a new name associated with it.

However, knowing and DOING are two different things! As my friend and colleague Peter Thurin ?says:

"Nothing changes if nothing changes!"

Spaced- repetition is the mother of all skill.?

You need a reason, a goal a WHY burning so big that you can't help but apply what you are learning, because it's attached to something...and that is a PURPOSE!?Purpose is your motivation, your fuel, your fire.

SO WHERE IS THE CONSPIRACY?

So here is what all us leadership development people know.

True personal growth is a process, not a one time event.

Unfortunately,?most leadership guru's won't tell you, this.

They rather fill you with inspirational stories of almost god-like leaders for you to aspire too. They give you awesome quotes (great to adapt to the thought patterns you may wish to possess). They entertain you. They "Edutain" or "Entertrain" you. They rest on the belief that it is up to you to make the changes, which is true, it is. As a leadership development speaker and author, our job is to inspire you with the hope that perhaps one idea will spark something in you to make the changes you want to become the leader you wish to be.

Here's what we understand so well that you NEED to understand if you want to maximise the return on your learning investments:

1. Identify what you want to HAVE?(Goals you would like to accomplish) in life.
2. Work out what type of leader?you need to BE?(what does a successful you look like?) to have that? Please be honest with yourself. If you think you're "all that" already then you wouldn't be wanting won't you don't have. What habits of thinking (Attitudes) would you have?
3. How would you BEHAVE (be/have)?as a leader if you thought like that?
4. Take that clarity and go learn what you need to learn to develop that (the content) type of leadership
5. Then, using the same process that got you to be who you are today, with repetition start using those new leadership thoughts (start with the end result in mind of who you need to BE). "It's like me to be purpose-driven". "I always make decisions through my values" etc.
6. Stretch?your comfort zone (your previously automatic thinking that drives your previously typical behaviour) with action (BEHAVE) aligned to what you want to accomplish (HAVE). As per the suggestions in point 5: Make a decision using your values. Set out to do something that aligns with your purpose.?
7. Then repeat point 5 & 6 on every occasion.
8. ?With the power of spaced-repetition, you will condition a new way of thinking (kinda like re-programming your automatic pilot to a new destination), which will drive the way you act, your behaviour. This new behaviour will give you new results and the success you are looking for.
9. Do it again with the next level of goals and success.
10. Do it again with the next level of goals and success beyond those ones
11. Do I need to go on?

You can become who you are by default and circumstance or by design. Either way is your choice. I will just add, if you don't like where you are and you didn't set a goal to be there...congratulations you achieved your goals of ending up anywhere. Now if you would like to be somewhere...see the above.

Leadership development guru's all know this. For the majority of you out there, they all know the likelihood of you making changes is low and the likelihood of you buying their stuff again and again is high.?

Don't let them get away with this! Take control and shift your thinking. Stretch the boundaries of your comfort zone and expand it out towards your goals. Understand it's a process. In closing I would like to remind you of two powerful quotes to inspire you (the conspiracy lives on!):

A child learns to walk and falls down 50 times. It never thinks to itself ‘Maybe this isn’t for me? Steven Mehr

The Reality Check:

You need to use the above process to absorb the content you are learning. Then you need to contextualize the learning (usually through coaching) into relevance for you. Lastly you need to embed the learning with repetitive action to embody it.

Then take another bite and repeat the above.

This is how we learn. This is how we transform.

Leadership is NOT A PROGRAM. It is A PROCESS.

You can't learn leadership in a 5-day course. Or one day a month for 8 months.

Expose this conspiracy for what it is.

Don't be fooled by the lure of famous names and embellished stories of grandeur. Don't become a leadership development junkie just looking for your next hit of inspiration.

Do something and BECOME an inspiration!

It's time to lead different.

Together we can...

#EvolveTheWorldOfWork

Dave Clare, Chief Evolution Officer

Circle Leadership

WEEKLY CLARISM

Please see above...you get the point.

NEW BOOK ALERT: humAIn - How AI Is Making Workplaces More Human

Dave's new book manuscript is done and out for pre-reading. You can get your name on the list to be updated with its full-release by following the link below!

https://www.humainatwork.com/

Early thoughts on humAIn...

"Dave Clare is one of those rare people?who is at the top of the game in the Leadership and Culture space while also being an early adopter and very proficient on all the recently available AI tools. In his outstanding book, HumAIn, Dave weaves together the power of leveraging AI with a hopeful outlook for its ability to make us more not less human. Amidst?all of the dystopian doom and gloomers, Dave offers a much more optimistic path for businesses that will embrace the future and leverage it for all of our advantages."

Daren Martin , PhD - The Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY Bestselling Author, Trusted Advisor, International Speaker and Founder Global Company Culture Association

"In 'humAIn,' Dave Clare brilliantly bridges the gap between AI and the human touch, offering leaders a guide to embracing technology without losing sight of our core values. As someone deeply involved in innovation and entrepreneurship, I find this book an essential read for anyone looking to lead with both cutting-edge insight and heartfelt humanity."

Jeff Hoffman - Speaker / Advisor / Humanitarian / Entrepreneur and Chairman of the Board, Global Entrepreneurship Network

WE ARE THE GENTLE CONTRARIANS

We have a unique and valuable approach to leadership, culture and strategy.

We value CLARITY...a profound understanding

Find out more about our team at Circle Leadership, and get to know us from the inside.

https://www.circleleadershipglobal.com/about

Evolving The World of Work Podcast is LIVE!

We Are Overdoing Work - Dane Groeneveld

The Power of Video and Media - Kirsty Nancarrow

How the Future Works - Brian Elliott

The Heart Leader - Geoffrey M. Roche

Making Work More Human - Aaron Zamykal

Ethical AI and The Future - Mo Hasan (releasing next week!)

Here's to our crazy ones...

We're redefining business success. It's not just about being the best in the world, but the best for the world. Our "crazy ones" are the entrepreneurs, the trailblazers, the mavericks of leadership who actually care about people. They are the leaders willing to go first, so their team can go further. Those who dare to put people and purpose first, where profit naturally follows.

This is for you.

This is for those of you who see people as humans first, employees second. You are the coaches, not bosses, building ecosystems of leadership where every voice matters, where every idea is valued. In your world, leadership is about purpose, not hierarchy; about outcomes, not tasks. You create spaces where people are involved and invested, where decisions are shared, not dictated.

Others might question your methods, wonder at your priorities. But one thing is certain — they cannot ignore you. You are more than innovators; you are the architects of the future. You are the ones crafting workplaces that don't just exist but excel; environments where people don't just work but belong.

Together we can...

#EvolveTheWorldOfWork

NB: Our "crazy ones" manifesto is styled on the Apple, think different campaign.

THE INNER-CIRCLE

Ideally, this?#newsletter?is for you. Yeah, we might share the odd humble brag, but it intends to add value and inspire more purpose-driven leadership worldwide. If you have a question on a relevant leadership, culture, or strategy topic, please ask and we will provide our insights.