Confidence Builds Teams, Arrogance Breaks Them
I was marvelling at one of my client CEOs the other day, and how they confidently sought input, insights, and a variety of perspectives from their team in what was a very troubling business issue.
Many CEOs I’ve worked with in my corporate life would have just solved this kind of problem themselves or dictated the way forward for the team. It’s a far too common and, let’s be honest, accidentally arrogant approach.
Confidence Builds Teams. Arrogance Breaks Them. And there’s a very fine line between the two!
You can be brilliant and still drive people away. Not because of your strategy. Because of how you speak. Ever notice how some leaders talk like they’re the smartest person in the room?
They don’t ask questions. They make pronouncements. And they mistake that for strength.
But here’s the truth. Arrogance isn’t leadership. It’s a liability. It's a major barrier to business growth. The difference between confident and arrogant leaders isn’t about how loud they are or how clear they sound. It’s about how their language affects the people around them.
Arrogance shuts people down:
It dismisses input.
It punishes challenge.
It hides mistakes behind blame.
Confidence brings people in:
It invites perspective.
It encourages debate.
It owns errors and moves forward.
If you’ve ever said, “Just do what I said”, or “That’s not your call”, or “I don’t need help with this”, you’re not leading. You’re dictating. It reeks of arrogance. And here’s what happens next:
Your team stops offering ideas.
Your top talent looks for the door.
You end up making decisions in an echo chamber.
Confident leaders speak differently. They ask things like:
“What are we missing?”
“Can you walk me through your thinking?”
“What do you need from me to move faster?”
That kind of language builds trust. And trust builds high-performance teams.
Here’s the real test. How do you handle being wrong?
Arrogant leaders deflect. Confident ones own it. And your team notices the difference.
This isn’t soft leadership. It’s real leadership. It earns buy-in when pressure’s high and time is short.
Every meeting, every one-on-one, every email, is a chance to lead with confidence or default to arrogance.
Your words shape your culture. Use them wisely.
And here’s another tip... Let your team SPEAK!!
You selected them for a reason. They bring different perspectives to the table, hopefully! So seek those out. When I’m in the room with my clients, the CEOs know they’ll be asked for their input last. And they’re almost always grateful for the quality of the discussion that follows.
Without the pressure to facilitate an outcome, we ask them to listen and be curious. There’s plenty of time to speak later.
If you don’t have a highly skilled facilitator or a Growth Advisor like us, make the effort to genuinely ask for opinions, examples, and insights from those around you.
The more you do that, the more confidence you’re showing, and you know what flows from this!!!
Grow well.
Adam