Fear has no Place in Leadership
I'm not normally one to make black and white statements. Over 20 years in HR leadership has taught me that most of life happens in the grey. I used to tell my team regularly that our job was to deal with the grey. Very little is black or white, right or wrong. There are usually three sides to every story: my side, your side, and the truth.
But on this, I make an exception. I'm nailing my colours to the mast: fear has no place in leadership.
Many company cultures still operate on a fear-based model of dominance and control. It's outdated. It's ineffective. And the neuroscience proves it's just bad for business.
What fear does to the brain
When people operate from fear, they're operating from the amygdala, the defensive, threat-detecting part of the brain. This triggers a stress response that shuts down the prefrontal cortex, the area responsible for creative thinking, problem-solving, and rational decision-making.
In a fear state, people go into survival mode. They cover up mistakes. They're not honest about what's going on. They play it safe instead of taking smart risks. Criticism, one of fear-based leadership's favourite tools, is one of the worst ways to change behaviour. It activates defensiveness, not growth.
What care and trust do to the brain
When people feel safe, cared for, and trusted, something fundamentally different happens. The brain shifts into a state where the prefrontal cortex can function optimally. This is where creativity lives. Where innovation happens. Where people solve complex problems and bring their best ideas forward.
Trust and safety don't just feel better, they unlock higher performance. If you want a high-performing team (and let's face it, this has become something of a buzzword), you don't build it on fear and control. You build it on care and trust.
Leadership is not about being in charge, it's about taking care of the people in your charge. If we want teams that show up when the going gets tough, we need teams that deeply care about each other, teams that have each other's backs. This is what great leaders focus on. They trade dominance for relationships. Trust, care and empowerment are at the centre of how they lead.
What does this look like in practice? In my work with leaders, I see this shift happen when they start asking "What can we learn?" before "Who's responsible? when a project fails" It's creating space for someone to say "I'm struggling" without fear of being seen as weak. It's celebrating the team member who flags a problem early, even if they caused it, because that's the behaviour you want to encourage.
The parenting analogy
The same principle applies to parenting. If my kids make a mistake or find themselves in trouble, even if they're doing something they shouldn't have been doing, I don't want them thinking, I can't call Mom, she'll kill me! I want them thinking, I need to call Mom, she'll help me.
That's the difference between fear and trust. And it's the same in leadership.
In a world of grey, this is one thing I'm certain of: the leaders who will thrive aren't the ones who rule through fear, they're the ones who lead through care.
That means leading yourself first. Staying emotionally regulated. Being self-aware enough to know when your own stress is driving your behaviour. These aren't soft skills, they're the foundation of effective leadership.
