Sometimes, My Honesty Might Cost Me a Client

One of the challenging aspects of being a coach is knowing that sometimes my honesty might cost me a client.

I’ve been in conversations where I’ve had to tell a founder that their team doesn’t trust them.

I’ve reflected to leaders that their style, though effective in the short term, was quietly damaging the culture they were trying so hard to build. I’ve told CEOs who prided themselves on being “visionary” that they avoided the honest, uncomfortable conversations their people desperately needed them to have.

Those moments aren’t easy. I can feel the tension in the room. Sometimes, they go quiet, sometimes they get defensive, and sometimes they push back hard.

My role is not to protect your comfort.
My role is to serve you and your long-term growth, and that may mean saying what others are afraid to say.

It’s tempting, in leadership, to surround yourself with people who only tell you what you want to hear. It feels safe. It strokes the ego, and over time, it holds you back from reaching your full potential.

Because without someone holding up a mirror, you can’t see the blind spots that limit your impact.

I don’t take that responsibility lightly. I know what’s at stake: businesses, teams, livelihoods, families, and every decision a founder makes ripples out far beyond them.

If I hold back just to stay liked, I’m not doing my job, and worse, I’m failing the very people I’m here to support.

What I’ve found is that the leaders who grow the most are the ones willing to lean into that discomfort.

They don’t always enjoy it at the moment (in fact, most don’t). And they recognize the gift in having someone who won’t sugarcoat things and instead will bring loving candor, and they know it’s in service of who they want to become.

That’s why I coach: to help leaders see clearly, even when it’s uncomfortable.
To stand with you as you wrestle with the hard truths.
To support you in doing the deep work that allows you to step fully into the leader you are capable of being and to create a whole and rich life that serves you fully.

Not everyone is willing to engage in that level of reflection, and for those who are, the experience is truly life-changing.

Yours in leadership,
Lee Povey