Many leaders act as if the point they’ve reached in their careers was easy to reach. This week on the Killer Innovations show, I will be discussing the various struggles all leaders face and how to counteract them.

From my perspective, as I progressed throughout my career, I ran into many different struggles. These struggles are some that I believe every leader will encounter. Rather than hiding these struggles from you, I will be putting them out in the sunlight for all of you to see. I have come to realize that all leaders are alike. As much as we think we are different, we are not as unique as we believe. We all share the same struggles.

The first leadership struggle I’ve encountered is lonely leadership. As you progress through an organization, it gets harder to find people that understand you. It’s a must for great leaders to be transparent. Share things with others around you. While transparency holds importance, is it always the answer? Transparency is only vital to a point. Reserve some things that you don’t need to share.

Lonely Leadership

You should never be transparent about your self-doubt. Being open about your struggles with employees can cause them concern about your organization. Secondly, never be transparent about your opinion of others. Especially key stakeholders. They will find out. My philosophy is never to burn a bridge no matter what. This decision has come back to benefit me throughout my career.

Thirdly, never be transparent about confidential information shared with you. I’ve seen may promising leaders sidelined because of issues of integrity and trust. Building a reputation for integrity as a leader is crucial. Just one wrong decision can break a reputation. Don’t make that mistake. Making a mistake will shatter your career. Being a leader is lonely. Who can you share these things? Your spouse? Not always.

I remember when I was at Teligent, and we were the hottest new thing. We were on the cover of Business Week, Forbes, WSJ, NY Times, etc. My wife was at her hairdresser one day, and the hairdresser was drilling her about the information on Teligent. He assumed she had access to confidential information and was getting aggressive. After that, my wife and I agreed to protect her. I do not share any confidential information with her. Never. She doesn’t want to be in that position.

Can you be transparent with anyone? Your coach or mentor. Let your board/shareholders know that you have a coach or mentor. If you’re going to share confidential information with someone, they should sign a non-disclosure agreement. All of this said you would be lonely as a leader. It comes with the position. Can you be transparent with someone?

What Got You Here Won’t Keep You Here

Will the skills that helped you reach your position keep you there? These things will not keep you here or progress you in your career. Look at me, for instance. My specialty is technical work. I have not touched technical work in 15 years. I had to learn new skills to advance. How did I learn those different skills? Right out of college, my mentor Bob told me that to find success; I had to broaden my playing fields. I knew my specialty very well, but I needed to have a variety of experiences.

What did I do?