Leadership is a Skill, Not a Position

Episode 213

Released June 26, 2025

Episode: Leadership is a Skill, Not a Position

Guest: Andy Coley - Leadership Development Expert & TEDx Speaker of the Year

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Episode Overview

Join Sue Firth as she interviews Andy Coley, a leadership development expert who transitioned from tech to transforming how people think about leadership. Andy shares his personal journey from IT professional to TEDx Speaker of the Year, revealing why leadership is a learnable skill rather than an automatic privilege of position.

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Key Topics & Timestamps

Andy's Background & Career Transition (5:00-12:00)

• Computer science degree sponsored by IBM in the late 90s
• Early career at Goldman Sachs in London tech sector
• Transition to web development and e-commerce in early 2000s
• Running own web development company as director

The Personal Crisis That Changed Everything (12:00-18:00)

• Mid-30s "epic life fail" around 2010-2011
• Business failure, debt, and 11-year marriage breakdown
• Weight gain to 23 stone (142kg) from overwork
• Near-suicidal thoughts and seeking help
• Discovery of NLP coaching as a turning point

The Leadership Philosophy: Skill vs Position (18:00-25:00)

• Why leadership doesn't automatically come with job titles
• The 82% statistic: Most leaders never receive formal leadership training
• Four stages of learning applied to leadership development:
  • Unconsciously incompetent
  • Consciously incompetent
  • Consciously competent
  • Unconsciously competent

Understanding NLP in Leadership (25:00-30:00)

• How people process information differently
• The thinking-feeling-doing connection
• Body language as primary non-verbal communication
• Using NLP to understand yourself and teach others

Common Leadership Challenges (30:00-35:00)

• "Why aren't my team doing what I'm telling them?"
• Matching leadership style to team experience level:
  • Directive: For emergencies or new employees
  • Coaching: For developing team members
  • Delegating: For experienced professionals
• The micromanagement trap with experienced teams

Managing Change & Uncertainty (35:00-42:00)

• "Shift Happens" philosophy
• Chinese proverb: "When winds of change blow, some build walls, others build windmills"
• Circles of control vs influence vs concern
• Leading with limited information during volatile times
• Supporting teams through uncertainty

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Key Takeaways

✅ Leadership is learnable - It's a skill set that can be developed, not an innate talent that comes with promotion

✅ Self-audit first - Assess your current leadership abilities through feedback and honest self-reflection

✅ Match your style to your team - Experienced teams need delegation, not micromanagement

✅ Focus on what you can control - During change, concentrate energy on your circle of control and influence

✅ Continuous feedback beats annual reviews - Regular micro-feedback is more effective than yearly performance dumps

✅ Personal crisis can become transformation - Sometimes our lowest points redirect us toward our true calling

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Resources Mentioned

📚 Book: "Leadership is a Skill" by Andy Coley
🌐 Website: leadershipisaskill.com
🌐 Andy's Website: andycoley.com