From Boss to Leader: Radical Transparency🔑

When you want to be more than “just a boss,” more than someone who manages tasks, then it’s time to learn the move that changes everything: radical transparency—even about the ugly stuff. 🫣

Ever had a boss who acts like they’ve got it all together? You know the type—never spills coffee before a big meeting, never forgets a name, never fumbles, never… breathes wrong. Yeah, believable as me saying I don’t like coffee. (Ha! Not gonna happen. 😉)

Here’s the thing: Bosses hide. Leaders reveal.

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Why Most Leaders Get It Wrong

Here’s the unspoken insight most leaders don’t admit: they avoid discomfort. They cover up mistakes, dodge questions they don’t know how to answer, or act like the smartest person in the room.

But ask yourself—when’s the last time someone pretended around you and you actually believed them? Mmhmm. Exactly.

Pretending doesn’t make you strong—it makes you untrustworthy. Your team already knows you’re not perfect. Radical transparency says: “I don’t have to be perfect to be credible. I just have to be real.”

And real? Real is magnetic.

How Starbucks Changed Things…

Leadership can change things for the better… and so can coffee.

Think about Howard Schultz, the Starbucks guy. When the company faced rocky expansions and setbacks, he didn’t stand up and say, “Everything’s fine, grab a latte and move on.”

Nope. He admitted doubt. He told the truth about the struggle. He even said he wasn’t sure what the outcome would be. 😉

And you know what happened? Employees didn’t run for the hills—they leaned in. They trusted him more. Because if your leader can be honest about the hard stuff, you know they’re credible when they share the good stuff.

Whether you’re leading at work, home, or even just trying to get your teenager to clean their room, people don’t follow perfection—they follow real.

The Path to Real Leadership

Here’s the good news: radical transparency isn’t complicated. It doesn’t require a TED Talk or a conference room with a fancy projector. It’s a few simple moves you can start this week.

🪟 1. Share a Professional Struggle… Not your deepest, darkest secret—this isn’t therapy.

But tell your team something real you wrestled with. Maybe a project flopped, a deadline slipped, or an analysis you thought was solid?

Let them see the human side of leadership. One moment of honesty will say more than ten PowerPoint slides ever could.

🪟2. Admit What You Don’t Know…and Ask for Ideas… Yes. Say it: “I don’t know.” Then… pause.

Give your team space to jump in. You’ll be surprised at the creativity, ownership, and engagement that shows up when you stop pretending you have all the answers.

🪟 3. Celebrate Failure (without the party hats)…When something flops, talk about what you learned—and laugh a little.

Humility plus humor? That’s leadership gold. And it’s contagious.

Your team learns that mistakes aren’t career-enders—they’re growth accelerators.

Why This Matters to You….

Let’s circle back to Howard Schultz. He did this on a global stage. His team didn’t scatter—they rallied together.

If Schultz could model radical transparency across thousands of employees worldwide, you can absolutely model it with your team, whether it’s a small office, a nonprofit, or your family business. You don’t need a Starbucks-sized budget or a global empire—you just need courage, honesty, and the willingness to be human in front of your people.

Credibility isn’t about knowing it all or never faltering. It’s about showing up real, even when it’s messy. And when you lead like that, trust grows, influence multiplies, and your team actually wants to follow you—not just obey you.

Do this, and here’s what you get:

• A team that leans in, not checks out.

• Influence that spreads naturally, not forced.

• Your leadership presence becoming magnetic instead of mandatory.

Get your blueprint to stop managing people and start leading them.

Grab your copy here.

📚 Take the Next Step:

If you want to keep leveling up and fully own your leadership, grab your copy of The Valuable Leader.

Book 1 will give you the tools, insights, and action steps to go from boss to leader—radical transparency included. Your team—and your future self—will thank you.

I’m cheering 📣 for you!

P.S. ➡️ Listen to the Podcast here

PS: Missed the first episodes in the From Boss to Leader series? Don’t worry. Start with Lead with Energy—How Energy Beats Time Every Time, then come back and see how radical transparency can completely change the game for you and your team. Remember: people don’t follow perfection—they follow real. Be the leader they can trust.