The Real Challenge with Leadership Training

It’s not that we’re training the wrong things — it’s that we’re not showing how the pieces fit together.

I’ve spent 30 years leading teams, delivering programmes, and training thousands of leaders. And I’ve come to a conclusion about leadership training that might ruffle a few feathers.

The content isn’t the problem.

Goleman’s six leadership styles? Excellent. Kouzes and Posner’s exemplary practices? Solid. Maxwell’s leadership levels? Useful. The research is good. The models are sound. The theory is there.

So why does so much leadership training fail to change anything?

Because it’s like IKEA furniture.

You get a flat pack with all the pieces, but no real instructions on how it fits together. You’re left standing in your living room with an Allen key, a bag of screws, and a vague sense of frustration.

Leadership training does the same thing. It hands people Goleman on Monday, Kouzes and Posner on Tuesday, and something about emotional intelligence on Wednesday. Each piece is valuable. But nobody shows you how they connect.

Here’s Goleman telling you that you need to master six different leadership styles. And here’s Kouzes and Posner telling you there are five practices of exemplary leadership. Great. But which style do I use when? And how do the practices relate to the styles? And where does influence fit in? And what about…

You see the problem.

The knowing-doing gap isn’t caused by not knowing enough. It’s caused by not knowing how the pieces fit.

When I train leaders, I don’t just teach Goleman’s styles. I link them to Kouzes and Posner. I show leaders exactly which styles enable which practices, and where they need to develop. Suddenly, it’s not six things and five other things. It’s one connected system.

That connection — that’s what closes the gap.

Most leadership courses give you parts. I give you the assembly guide.

Here’s what I’ve learned after three decades

Leaders don’t fail because they lack knowledge. They fail because they can’t see how to apply it. They’re standing there with all the pieces, no instructions, and a deadline.

The solution isn’t more content. It’s connection.

Link the models. Show the relationships. Make the path visible.

When leaders can see how Goleman connects to Kouzes and Posner, they stop wondering what to do. They start doing it.

That’s the difference between leadership theory and leadership capability.

One fills your head. The other gets you into action.

The real challenge with leadership training isn’t what we teach. It’s that we hand people a flat pack and wish them luck.

Stop giving people more pieces.

Start showing them how to build.

Written by Gordon Tredgold.