294. People Follow Care, Not Titles with Mick Spiers

What if the hardest leadership skills are the most human ones? We pull together a month of conversations and share a playbook for leading with presence, purpose, and care—so people don’t just survive at work, they come alive. From micro moments that create mattering, to authentic leadership that fits like your own skin, to change communication that removes uncertainty, to feedback that is firm and compassionate, the thread is clear: people follow care, not titles.

We start with the power of mattering inspired by Zach Mercurio: making people feel seen, heard, valued, and needed. You’ll hear practical ways to turn small interactions into a performance flywheel, including the underrated art of the second impression. Then we explore Matt Poepsel’s path from imitation to authenticity, using a leadership credo and a values-behavior audit to align mission accomplishment with employee welfare. Expect takeaways for coaching new managers so they don’t copy past mistakes but build a style they can sustain.

We dig into change leadership with John Martinka’s reminder that during mergers and acquisitions, the real asset is people. Learn how to communicate early, honest, and often; reframe fear into opportunity; and fill the rumor vacuum with clarity and hope. Finally, Jeff Hancher shows how feedback, delivered with care, transforms potential. We unpack the FEAR traps that block tough conversations and lay out a simple, repeatable approach to candid coaching that builds trust and accelerates growth.

Walk away with three anchoring questions: who needs to hear they matter, how will you show up as your authentic self, and which honest conversation will you have today. If the ideas sparked something, tap follow, share this with a leader who needs it, and leave a quick review telling us which practice you’ll try first.

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Episode Transcript

Mick Spiers (00:00):
Have you ever stopped to ask yourself, why do
people really show up to workevery day?
What makes them thrive, notjust survive?
And what is it that separatesmanagers who get results from
leaders who bring people alive?
This month on the LeadershipProject, we've explored some of
the most human and oftenoverlooked dimensions of

(00:21):
leadership.
How we make people feel thatthey matter, how we help them
find their authentic voice, andhow we lead them through change.
And also how we tell them thehard truths that help them grow.
Hey everyone, and welcome backto The Leadership Project.

(00:44):
Today is going to be a solocast where I reflect on our
conversations with our Octoberguests, Zach Mercurio, Matt
Poepsel, John Martinka, and JeffHancher.
And through thoseconversations, a single thread
stood out.
Leadership is not about power,it's about people, it's about

(01:04):
presence, and it's aboutpurpose.
So let's unpack what we learntfrom each of these extraordinary
guests.
Firstly, let's go to ZackMercurio.
Zach reminded us that nothingcan truly matter to someone who
doesn't first believe that theymatter.
We often tell people to findtheir purpose, but how can they

(01:28):
if they don't first feel worthyof having one?
He called this mattering andthe power of mattering, the
experience of feeling seen,heard, valued, and needed.
It's built not through grandgestures, but through micro
moments of connection a kindword, a small act of

(01:50):
recognition, a moment of genuinecuriosity.
Zach's research shows that whenpeople feel valued, they become
more likely to add value, andthat starts a powerful upward
spiral.
The more we feel valued, themore we contribute, and the more

(02:11):
we contribute, the more we seeevidence that we matter.
He said something that stoppedme in my tracks.
Your next great act ofleadership is your next
interaction.
And this is a beautifulreminder that the true measure
of leadership isn't found instrategy documents or
dashboards.

(02:31):
It's found in the quality ofour human interactions.
So your homework here is towork out what you can do in
those micro moments.
Those little moments where youremember something, where you
remember something about anindividual, where you take the
time to hold space for yourteam, to make them feel seen, to

(02:54):
make them feel heard, to makethem feel valued.
Instead of telling them yourideas all the time, invite them
to bring their ideas to thetable and listen.
Listen without judgment andlisten with presence.
Show them that you're paying ahundred percent and full

(03:15):
attention to them and they willfeel valued.
And when they feel valued,they'll bring more value.
We spoke in the episode aboutthe importance of our second
impression.
A lot of people talk aboutwanting to make a good first
impression, but I'm going totell you, making a good second
impression may be even morevaluable.
And this shows up throughinteractions like this.

(03:38):
Hey, I've been thinking aboutour last conversation.
I've been thinking about whatyou said, and here's what I've
thought about.
It shows them that your lastinteraction with them was
important to you, and it makesthem feel valued.
So think about your micromoments in the workplace with
your team and think about howyou're going to make everyone

(04:02):
feel seen, heard, and valued forthem to feel that they matter.
And when people feel that theymatter, they do things that
matter.
This was followed up by ourgreat conversation with Matt
Poepsel around expanding thecircle, enlightened leadership
for our new world.
Matt shared his journey from aself-described rubbish manager

(04:25):
to a leader who discovered thatauthenticity is the foundation
of effectiveness.
He talked about how many newleaders try to emulate those who
came before them, wearingsomeone else's leadership style
like a coat that doesn't fit.
True leadership, Matt said,begins when you stop copying

(04:46):
others and start connecting toyourself.
He shared a powerful mantra.
Mission accomplishment andemployee welfare in equal
measure.
The key essence here is that wesucceed through our people, not
at the expense of our people.
And Matt also reminded us thatleadership without

(05:08):
self-awareness leads toemptiness, that hollow feeling
of success without fulfillment.
Wholeness, on the other hand,comes when your values, your
behavior, and your leadershipstyle are congruent with each
other.
So that's your challenge forevery leader listening.

(05:29):
Ask yourself, are you helpingnew leaders find themselves?
Or just throwing them into thedeep end and hoping they swim.
Because if we don't help themconnect to who they are, they'll
simply replicate the mistakesof leaders who came before them.
That first journey intoleadership is a key one.

(05:52):
It's one that's fraught withdanger.
It's usually also accompaniedwith a roller coaster of
emotions.
A newly appointed leader hasthe euphoric highs that they
feel like they've finally beenrecognized for their prowess,
for being good at their craft,being good at what they do.
But then comes the thud.

(06:14):
And the thud is the anxiety andrealization that they're not
even sure what it means to be aleader.
And then they start looking atother leaders around them and
start replicating thosebehaviors without thinking about
it.
Often replicating behavior ofleaders that they didn't even

(06:35):
like themselves.
So encourage new leaders toconnect to themselves.
What do they think goodleadership looks like?
Ask them to think about all ofthe leaders that they have had
in their career.
Which leaders inspired them?
And what did those leaders do?
What did they do to inspirethem?
Which leaders demoralize them?

(06:56):
And once again, whatspecifically did those leaders
do to demoralize them?
And from this, the person candevelop their own authentic
style of leadership thatconnects to themselves, one that
they'd be proud of.
Developing their own leadershipcredo.
Statements like, as a leader, Iwill.
And this is your list ofpositive attributes of things

(07:23):
that you will do as a leader andthat you strive to do.
And the negative list, thethings that you commit that you
will never do to another humanbeing.
From this, you can develop yourown authentic style of
leadership.
And this is what our newleaders need to do.
Our next interview was withJohn Martinka, who spoke about

(07:44):
leading through change anduncertainty.
We explored what it means tolead through major change,
including mergers andacquisitions, and those
unsettling transitions thatshake the ground beneath a
team's feet.
John said something profound.
The real asset being bought andsold in a merger and
acquisition is the people.

(08:05):
And yet when organizations gothrough change, they find that
fear is the first reaction.
People worry about losing theirjobs, their sense of belonging,
their safety.
But John taught us that greatleaders reframe the narrative
from fear of loss to excitementabout what they might gain.

(08:26):
Great leaders communicateearly, honest, and often.
They help people see thatchange can mean new capital, new
ideas, and new opportunities.
It doesn't all have to be doomand gloom.
And one of the most importanttakeaways for me was this that
people don't actually fearchange.

(08:48):
They fear uncertainty.
And in the absence ofinformation, they make up their
own stories.
So it's up to us, it's our jobto fill that vacuum with
clarity, with compassion, andwith hope.
And to remind our teams thatthey are the asset that's being

(09:09):
invested in.
So if you and your team aregoing through some kind of
merger and acquisition here,instead of being fearful all the
time of loss and the challengesthat it's going to bring, take
a moment to reframe and thinkabout well, what positive might
come from this?

(09:29):
What new opportunities mightarise and how might we make the
best of this situation?
And finally, we had JeffHancher, who spoke to us about
firm feedback in a fragileworld.
Jeff's story hit me deeply.
He shared his journey frompoverty and pain to a place of

(09:50):
leadership shaped by mentors whocared enough to tell him the
truth, even when it hurt.
He reminded us that we growthrough feedback and that
avoidance isn't kindness, it'sneglect.
Jasp used the acronym fear, F EA R, to describe why leaders

(10:11):
avoid feedback.
F was for fallout.
What if this ruins myreputation?
E was for emotion.
What if they cry?
What if they get angry?
A is for amateur.
What if I don't know how to doit right?
And R was for retaliation.
What if this all backfires?

(10:31):
But then he shared a story ofhis own mentor, Sean, the man
who once looked him in the eyeand said Enough is enough.
I'm not going to let you wasteyour potential.
That tough conversation changedJeff's life.
He went on to earn twelvepromotions, become a senior

(10:52):
leader, and now teaches otherswhat his mentor taught him.
That firm feedback deliveredwith care is one of the purest
forms of love in leadership.
We can be both kind and candid,and in fact we must be.
The reframe that I like tothink of here is that feedback

(11:12):
is a gift, and to alwaysremember that people can't fix
what they don't know about.
Have a think about yourself.
If you were doing somethingthat was infuriating another
human being and they didn't tellyou about it, you'd be
devastated.
You'd be going, Oh, why didn'tthey tell me?
Why didn't they tell me thatwhat I was doing, my actions or

(11:35):
my inaction, was making theirlife harder than it need to be.
And then flip that onto theother side.
Imagine you're the one that'swithholding the feedback.
Withholding the feedback isrobbing them from the
opportunity to address the thingthat's holding them back.
So if you've been avoiding atough conversation, one that

(11:59):
someone else needs to hear, youneed to step into the breach.
You need to think about thefact that you're preventing this
person from learning andgrowing and from unlocking their
full potential.
So in closing, when I step backand reflect on these four
conversations, a clear messageemerges.

(12:20):
People don't follow titles,they follow care.
They don't need perfectleaders, they need present
leaders.
And they don't need grandgestures.
They need small, meaningfulmoments of connection.
Zach Mercurio showed us that wemust make people feel that they

(12:41):
matter.
Matt Poepsel taught us to leadfrom authenticity and
self-awareness.
John Martinka reminded us toleave with clarity through
change.
And Jeff Hancher showed us thatfeedback given with care is an
act of service, not criticism.
These are not soft skills.

(13:02):
They are the hard edge of humanleadership.
So I'll leave you with threequestions to reflect on this
week.
Who in your world needs to bereminded that they matter?
Number two, are you showing upas your authentic self or
wearing someone else's coat?
And number three, who do youneed to have an honest, caring

(13:25):
conversation with?
The one that might just changetheir life.
If today's solo cast made youpause and reflect, I'd love to
hear from you.
What resonated with you?
Which of these lessons are yougoing to apply this week?
You can share your reflectionson LinkedIn or YouTube or just
shirts for The LeadershipProject with Mick Spiers and

(13:47):
join our growing community ofleaders committed to making
workplaces more human.
Because leadership is not aboutbeing in charge, it's about
caring for those in your charge.
So until next time, remember tostop, reflect, and ask yourself
who did I help feel seen,heard, and valued today?
In the next episode, we'regoing to be joined by Steve

(14:10):
Fortunado.
He's going to talk to us abouttransforming leadership through
hospitality and connection.