Back in my corporate days, I remember finding myself in a leadership rut.
I was leading a team on a high-stakes publishing project, and while everything looked fine on the surface, I could feel something was off. The energy was low. Meetings felt uninspired. Deadlines were met, but just barely. I wasn’t losing my influence, but I certainly wasn’t maximizing it either.
I did what many leaders do when things feel stagnant—I doubled down on strategy. I read more, planned more, and tried to fix the team’s engagement with better processes. But the more I pushed, the more I felt like I was running on a treadmill—moving fast but going nowhere.
That’s when I realized I was asking the wrong questions.
The real key to leadership influence isn’t about finding the perfect system or strategy. It’s about reconnecting with who you are as a leader and how that impacts others.
If you feel like your leadership presence is fading or your influence isn’t as strong as it used to be, I invite you to ask yourself these three key questions.
1. Am I Leading with Clarity or Just Managing Tasks?
Leadership is about vision. If your days are filled with problem-solving and firefighting, but you’ve lost sight of why you’re leading in the first place, your team will feel it.
When I was in that rut, I realized I had stopped sharing the bigger purpose behind our work. I was so caught up in execution that I wasn’t inspiring people with the “why” anymore.
The Fix: Take a step back. Reconnect with your bigger vision, and communicate it often. Your team needs more than direction—they need purpose.
2. Am I Listening or Just Talking?
It’s easy to believe that as a leader, you need to have all the answers. But leadership influence isn’t about knowing everything—it’s about engaging everyone.
During that difficult period, I noticed that I had fallen into the trap of telling more than I was listening. I thought I was providing guidance, but in reality, I was shutting down creative input.
The Fix: Start every conversation with curiosity. Ask more questions. Listen longer than feels comfortable. Influence isn’t about being the loudest in the room—it’s about making others feel heard.
3. Am I Modeling the Energy I Want to See?
Your team mirrors you. If you’re stressed, they feel it. If you’re uninspired, they will be too.
One of my biggest breakthroughs came when I stopped looking at my team’s lack of enthusiasm as their issue and started seeing it as mine. I had let my own energy slip, and they were simply reflecting it back.
The Fix: Be the example. If you want an engaged, committed, and energized team, lead with engagement, commitment, and energy yourself. People follow what they see more than what they’re told.
(BTW, if you have kids, these approaches work equally well!)
Final Thought: Leadership Influence is Reigniteable
That period of doubt taught me that leadership isn’t about perfection—it’s about presence. When I started leading with clarity, listening deeply, and modeling the energy I wanted to see, things shifted. My team responded. The work felt purposeful again.
If you’ve been feeling like your leadership influence isn’t where it should be, start with these three questions. Small shifts in awareness create big changes in impact.
Which of these three areas do you need to work on the most? Hit reply and let me know—I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Jo-Aynne Von Born, Leadership and Executive Coach
Reprinted from my weekly newsletter, Awaken Your Potential. Join here to receive for free.