Leadership isn’t just about results, metrics, or authority. It’s about the daily, often invisible, transactions that shape a team’s culture, morale, and growth. Every word you speak, every decision you make, every glance you give—these all add up to deposits or withdrawals in your leadership bank account. This concept, though subtle, is one of the most powerful tools for managers and business owners who want to build thriving organizations.
Just like your personal integrity or brand, leadership influence must be earned daily. The decisions you make can either build trust and empower others, or drain energy, erode morale, and block growth. You don’t get to coast on yesterday’s success. Every day resets the balance.
Daily Leadership Deposits and Withdrawals
Imagine leadership as an account you draw from. Each day, you begin with a neutral balance. Every interaction with your team is a transaction:
- Deposits include listening, encouragement, clarity, trust, recognition, consistency, and respect.
- Withdrawals include micromanagement, blame, favoritism, passive aggression, unclear expectations, and withholding feedback.
The kicker? Most withdrawals happen unconsciously. A sigh of frustration in a meeting. A skipped thank-you. Overlooking someone’s contribution. These aren’t big enough to be labeled “toxic,” but they add up. And over time, they bankrupt your credibility.
On the flip side, small consistent deposits compound. A well-timed compliment. A check-in when someone seems off. Giving someone space to solve a problem on their own. These are subtle, but they create safety, trust, and engagement.
Leadership isn’t a position. It’s a daily investment in others.
Don’t Come Between an Employee and Their Growth
Just as in life, one of the most dangerous things a person can do is interfere with someone else’s growth. In business, this often looks like insecurity in management.
Let’s be real: not every manager wants to see their employee shine. Sometimes, managers feel threatened when a team member performs better, receives praise, or thinks independently. And that fear causes them to clip the wings of talent rather than nurture it.
When a leader becomes more focused on being “needed” or “known” than on building others, they’re no longer leading—they’re blocking. They’re standing between someone and their next level.
True leaders are multipliers, not bottlenecks. They celebrate others’ wins, delegate meaningful work, and get excited when someone outgrows their current role. They don’t hoard credit. They create a runway.
Your job isn’t to keep people dependent on you. It’s to build people who don’t need you to thrive.
The Corrosive Effects of Pride, Jealousy, and Misused Authority
Toxic leadership isn’t always loud. Sometimes, it’s the quiet corrosion—the little behaviors that don’t make the HR report but slowly drain the life out of a team. Pride, jealousy, and misused authority don’t always come in the form of shouting or blatant disrespect. Often, they show up in micro-decisions, passive dynamics, and patterns that go unchecked.
Pride
Pride in leadership often masquerades as confidence, but it’s rooted in insecurity. It’s the need to always be right, to have the final word, to prove you’re the smartest person in the room. It’s shutting down ideas before they’re fully heard. It’s that tension you feel when someone younger or less experienced offers a better idea—and instead of embracing it, you redirect the credit or minimize the contribution.
This kind of pride blocks collaboration. It teaches your team not to think, but to comply. Over time, people stop bringing their best ideas forward—not because they don’t have them, but because they know they’ll never be acknowledged.
Jealousy
Jealousy in leadership is subtle but lethal. It’s not congratulating a team member when they outperform. It’s assigning someone fewer opportunities because their shine makes you uncomfortable. It’s withholding praise because you’re afraid their growth might outpace yours.
This isn’t just unhealthy—it’s unscalable. In the best teams, leaders lift as they climb. They create room for others to win, knowing that success is not a zero-sum game.
But jealousy turns collaboration into competition. It shifts the culture from “we’re building something together” to “don’t outshine the boss.” And when that happens, talented people leave—not just physically, but emotionally. They disengage.
Misused Authority
Authority is a privilege, not a weapon. Yet too many leaders confuse leadership with control. Micromanagement, manipulation, withholding information, using fear instead of trust—these are signs of insecure authority.
Misused authority sounds like:
- “Because I said so.”
- “I don’t need to explain myself.”
- “Don’t worry about why, just do it.”
It’s tempting to lead from command when you’re under pressure. But sustainable leadership requires influence, not intimidation. Real leaders don’t just give orders—they build understanding. They develop people, not just productivity.
The Culture These Behaviors Create
What do pride, jealousy, and control have in common? They make people shrink.
They create a culture where:
- People second-guess themselves.
- Meetings are quieter.
- Innovation slows.
- Trust erodes.
- Turnover rises.
Employees stop asking, “How can I contribute?” and start asking, “How can I stay safe?” And when people are focused on self-protection, they can’t give their best.
If you want to know how healthy your leadership is, ask yourself this:
“Can people on my team grow here—even if they surpass me?”
If the honest answer is no, it’s time to reflect. Pride, jealousy, and fear are natural impulses—but they must be confronted, not coddled. Great leadership requires the humility to get out of the way when others are ready to rise.
Watch This Closely: The Business Agreements Filter for Toxic Leadership
One of the most reliable ways to prevent toxic habits from creeping into your leadership style is to regularly check yourself against a set of clear, non-negotiable business values. These aren’t feel-good concepts—they’re disciplines that drive accountability and shape a healthy culture.
Speak with Integrity and Purpose
Pride usually starts in the narratives we tell ourselves and others to boost our own image. Ask yourself: Are you using your words to build people up—or subtly positioning yourself above them?
Let Others’ Success Inspire, Not Threaten
Insecurity breeds jealousy when someone else on your team gets praise, achieves something big, or grows quickly. A secure leader doesn’t see growth as competition—they see it as proof of a thriving team.
Ask Before You Assume
The misuse of power often stems from believing others aren’t ready or capable. True leadership is fueled by curiosity, not control. When you stay open and ask questions, you unlock the full potential of the people around you.
Show Up Fully, Not Just Productively
Doing your best isn’t just about completing tasks. It’s about showing up with intention and creating a space where others can do their best too. Are you building a place where people are energized—or just efficient?
Spread the Vision, Not the Spotlight
Strong leaders aren’t afraid of someone else getting credit. They champion their people, share wins, and understand that influence isn’t lost by lifting others—it’s multiplied.
Toxic leadership isn’t always loud or obvious. It often shows up in silence, subtle dismissals, and unchecked ego. But when you commit to these business agreements with consistency and humility, you create an environment where trust grows and everyone has room to lead.
Leadership gut check: Are you developing leaders—or quietly limiting them to maintain control?
The Habits of High-Impact Leaders
Effective leaders operate from daily disciplines. They understand that influence is fragile and that culture is shaped in the moments no one is watching. Here are some habits to build the kind of leadership culture people want to be part of:
- Praise publicly, correct privately.
- Ask more questions than you give answers.
- Give away credit quickly and often.
- Own your mistakes visibly.
- Offer growth opportunities, even if it means they outgrow your team.
- Create space for others to lead in meetings, projects, or initiatives.
- Model the behavior you want to see.
Leadership is not about being impressive. It’s about being impactful. And impact always outlasts ego.
Spiritual Wisdom Meets Business Logic
You don’t have to be religious to understand this: trying to take credit for others’ growth is not just wrong, it’s unsustainable.
Whether you call it karma, energy, or just plain logic—when you hoard recognition, block others’ growth, or make leadership about you, it always comes back around. People leave. Trust erodes. Your influence shrinks.
On the flip side, leaders who sow encouragement, recognition, support, and shared ownership build companies that scale far beyond one person.
Great leaders understand this truth: your success is measured by how many people are succeeding around you.
Creating a Daily Practice: The Leadership Check-In
Want to make this stick? Here’s a simple, daily leadership check-in you can do in 5 minutes:
Morning Intention:
- Who can I support today?
- What situation can I let someone else lead?
- How will I respond when someone else gets recognition?
Midday Checkpoint:
- Have I micromanaged or empowered?
- Have I listened more than I’ve talked?
- Have I made any invisible withdrawals?
End-of-Day Reflection:
- What deposit did I make into someone’s growth?
- Where might I have come between someone and their momentum?
- What can I do better tomorrow?
Consistency, not intensity, builds culture. It’s the quiet discipline of self-awareness and intentional action that transforms workplaces.
Final Thoughts: Legacy Isn’t Loud, It’s Lasting
At the end of the day, your leadership will be remembered less by your title and more by how people felt around you.
Did they feel seen? Safe? Encouraged? Trusted?
Or did they walk on eggshells, feel overlooked, or worry that their success would cost them favor?
You don’t have to lead with fear to be respected. You don’t have to hog the mic to be heard. You don’t have to have all the answers to be followed.
You just have to consistently deposit trust, respect, opportunity, and humility.
That’s the invisible currency of leadership. Spend it wisely.
Written by Cole Attaway
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