The Learning Shift
The Learning Shift Podcast
Lead with Courage or Don’t Bother Leading at All
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Lead with Courage or Don’t Bother Leading at All

Leadership isn’t about being liked. It’s about creating spaces where people feel brave enough to show up fully—and vulnerable enough to grow. That means going first, especially when it’s uncomfortable.

Featured Book: Dare to Lead by Brené Brown

Big Idea: Courageous leadership is what creates trust. And trust is what fuels performance, belonging, and retention.

Discussion Beats:

  • Why vulnerability isn’t weakness—and how to model it without oversharing

  • What “rumbling with hard conversations” looks like in a real work week

  • The difference between armored leadership and grounded confidence

  • How to spot fear-based behavior in yourself and your team—and what to do about it

Summary: This isn’t a book about psychological safety per se—but it is a manifesto for the kind of leadership that makes safety possible. Brené Brown blends research with real-world stories to argue that courage, vulnerability, and emotional exposure are non-negotiable leadership skills. She introduces tools like “rumbling with vulnerability,” living into your values, and learning to rise after setbacks. It’s deeply human and immediately useful.

Core message: You can’t create trust without courage. Leaders who avoid discomfort avoid growth—for themselves and their teams.

Closing Takeaway:
Your team’s courage starts with yours. Go first. Model it. Protect it. That’s the job.

This isn’t about making people comfortable. It’s about making it safe to be real.
If you want honesty, creativity, and high performance—you need psychological safety. And you can’t delegate that. You model it.


👉 Join the next LGI SuperSession: Psychological Safety — It Starts With Me.
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A quick note on how this content was created: To bring you thoughtful and timely insights, parts of this article were created with the help of AI tools, then reviewed and refined by a human (that's us!). We use technology to support clarity and creativity — but the heart of our content is always guided by experience, learning, and purpose. As always, we encourage you to explore these ideas with curiosity and critical thinking. If something sparks a question or you want to dig deeper, we’re here to keep the conversation going.

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