Hey team,

As I’m deep into 2026 planning, asking myself questions to ensure we can reach the goals we set, I wanted to share some thoughts I have around leadership and leveling up our teams as we grow so quickly..

One thing I’ve learned over and over is this:

If we want to level up as leaders, our teams HAVE to level up with us and it’s our job to give them the tools, the clarity, and the environment to do that.

And if we don’t, we eventually become the bottleneck.

And if we do, and they don’t, eventually they become it.

This isn’t an insult. It’s a principle of leadership physics.

I ask myself these same questions EVERY quarter, and I want all of us to reflect on them with the same honesty and standards (it is not always easy to be honest)

Many of you, and people in general are privy to looking at business strategy, but people strategy is often overlooked. The best companies look at the people first.

Here are the questions I’m sitting with and I’m asking each of you to sit with them too:

Is my team rising at the same rate I am?

Or am I outpacing them in a way that creates irritation, drag and frustration instead of lift?

Have I given my team the tools, systems, and clarity they need to grow?

Lack of growth is often a symptom of lack of structure or lack of direction.

Am I developing leaders or just managing doers?

Do I have people who can take ownership, make decisions, and operate without me? Do I have successors?

Am I delegating at the level that matches the leader I want to become?

Or am I holding onto tasks because my bench isn’t ready (and if so — why isn’t it??)

Do I have the right people for the next version of the company?

Not just the current version … the future version we’re building. Because it will be here before you know it.

If the answer is no, what am I doing about it?

Is my team getting better because of my leadership or in spite of it? Am I why they are succeeding, or is it the greater environment?

Hard question, but the most important one…

If every person on my team performed at the level of my top performer, how different would our outcomes be?

What am I doing to close that gap? Why haven’t I done something yet?

And finally - if someone on my team simply cannot meet the expectations, even with clarity, support, and development… am I willing to make the hard call to replace them or supplement with someone else?

Part of leadership is giving people every reasonable chance to rise

and part of leadership is knowing when the role has outgrown the person.

Both are an act of stewardship to the business and greater team.

I ask myself these same questions because the truth is simple:

We cannot lead at a billion-dollar level with hundred-million-dollar team standards.

Growth requires alignment, and alignment requires intention. If a single person on your team is not growing or performing at the level needed, they are now your team’s ceiling.

Take time this week to reflect on these questions and feel free to bring any realizations, gaps, or needs to me if you want a sounding board 🙏

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