High Performers Aren’t Always Ready Leaders
The gap between being a high performer and becoming an effective leader requires honesty, feedback, and a commitment to continuous growth.
For a long time, I assumed that supervisors, managers, and senior leaders were people who had somehow been “in charge” their whole lives.
When I was 14 and working at McDonald’s, I remember thinking my manager wasn’t very kind, helpful, or effective at guiding us to do our jobs. What confused me most wasn’t her behavior—it was the question behind it: How did she get here if she wasn’t good at leading people? It’s a theme many of us have experienced at some point in our careers.
Years later, I understood it differently—because leadership became mine.
When my Air Force supervisor retired and I stepped into responsibility for the Training office, my perspective shifted overnight. I had been a strong individual contributor. I understood the work. But suddenly, I also had direct reports, competing priorities, and people looking to me for decisions and direction—while my own workload didn’t slow down.
I had supervisor training. I knew the concepts.
Putting them into practice was a different story.
What I realized quickly was that the transition wasn’t about whether I was capable. The organization needed someone in the role, and I was a reliable high performer. Readiness wasn’t a prerequisite—it was something I had to grow into.
That’s where many leadership struggles begin.
High performance reflects success in a current role. Leadership readiness reflects the ability to operate at a different level entirely—broader scope, greater ambiguity, and accountability for outcomes you don’t directly control. Those skills don’t automatically come with a promotion.
There’s no perfect formula for being a “ready” leader. But there is a responsibility—to close the gap between doing the work well and leading others well.
That gap is filled through honesty, feedback, learning, and reflection. It’s built by listening to what you hear, seeking advice from people who lead well, and accepting that growth doesn’t stop once you’re given the title.
High performers aren’t the problem. Promotions aren’t the problem.
The problem is treating leadership as a reward instead of a responsibility that requires preparation.
The leaders people trust most are the ones who never assume they’re finished growing.
