This fourth Spin Spark explores why leadership vulnerability can feel uncomfortable, even scary, for many of us, especially in the public sector. The truth is that leadership is not for the faint of heart. Authenticity and vulnerability are essential to leading well, yet they often require us to step into uncertainty, take risks, and show up in ways that feel deeply personal.

If you are in a position of leadership, whether formal or informal, and feeling the raw edge of vulnerability, this short read is for you. As you read, consider your moral and ethical core and how it shapes the choices you make about sharing parts of yourself as a leader. What does it mean to lead with less armour and more humanity? How do we remain authentic while navigating the responsibilities and expectations that come with leadership?

Spin Spark #4: Leadership Vulnerability

I jokingly shared in my last spin about kicking the vault of vulnerability open, and while I shared that in jest, it has stuck with me. I admit I am sensitive to oversharing and always try to be mindful of the fine lines between personal and professional lives. While family, friends, and the workplace are interconnected, there are important boundaries that help maintain personal privacy and professional roles.

I used to think vulnerability belonged firmly in the personal zone, perhaps even edging toward weakness, and certainly not something to write or speak about in leadership circles. As a classroom teacher, I knew how important emotional connectedness and sharing were in building learning relationships with students. Our students need to see our humanity and feel that core connection of togetherness within classroom communities. It was the little jokes, the knowledge of life outside of school, the family photos, or the personal anecdotes that always helped build authentic relationships in my classrooms. I loved this side of teaching, the human connections that fuel deep learning.

While I carried this forward as a core professional practice, first as a principal and later as a district leader, it became increasingly difficult. I wasn't sure where vulnerability fit when you were expected to be the person with the strong plan and steady answers.

What I have since realized is that vulnerability is just as important when working with adults. Just as our students need to see who we are as humans, our colleagues, teams, and those we interact with need to experience that same humanity. At the same time, understanding and maintaining professional boundaries remain important protective factors that require ongoing attention and care.

Vulnerability in relationships is often defined as a state of emotional exposure. It is a place where we become more open to being hurt, where harm can slip past our usual protections. We see the concept everywhere: relational and emotional vulnerability, environmental and social vulnerability, even cybersecurity and technology vulnerability. From human relationships to disaster management and computer science, vulnerability is often framed as a condition of risk. It's not surprising, then, that many of us learn to treat it as a dangerous place to stay for too long.

Leadership Vulnerability: The Reframe

In the past, vulnerability was frequently referred to as a soft skill, one that sat on the "nice-to-have" rather than the necessary list for high-performing leaders. Tremendous research on the importance of human and relational connectivity, alongside the impact of a sense of belonging on workplace performance, innovation, and productivity, has changed modern dialogues around vulnerability.

Agile leaders learn how to be personal without being too personal. There is a delicate and often sensitive balance between how much we share, what we share, and with whom we share it. Part of leadership vulnerability requires recognizing both oversharing and undersharing. Learning to navigate that balance often takes time, experience, and self-awareness. Mentors and critical friends can help us reframe by reflecting on what may be too much, what may not be enough, and how our sharing impacts others in the workplace.

In leadership circles, vulnerability is often cited as the raw material that builds trust and drives innovation. It is part of the DNA of strong teams that are able to remain aligned while holding different portfolios and responsibilities. Vulnerability and human connection keep us curious about each other's work rather than competing for space and place. Leaders who recognize this are better able to build organizational cultures where people work together toward completion, rather than creating contexts where the best person wins at all costs.

3 questions to consider in the reframe are:

1. How much of myself and my experiences am I willing and able to share in service of building authentic connections at work?
2. Does sharing my story deepen trust and connection with others, or does it shift the focus away from the purpose of the conversation?
3. When vulnerability feels uncomfortable, how can I share enough to build connection while still maintaining appropriate professional boundaries?

Leadership Vulnerability: The Let Go

Vulnerability requires some release of ego and a resetting of what, and who, matters most. In doing so, leaders who share their humanity and imperfections become not game enders, but game changers.

Leaders who surround themselves with people who possess specialized skills are not ignoring their own weaknesses or relinquishing accountability. Rather, they are strategically recognizing where additional expertise is needed to ensure the work moves forward effectively and with care. Vulnerable leadership recognizes that no one person has all of the answers, and that strong outcomes are often the result of collective strengths rather than individual expertise.

Another consideration in the process of letting go is recognizing that silos exist in every workplace. Overcoming silos and ensuring that specialized knowledge is integrated across teams requires leaders who understand influence and how it operates. Identifying who holds influence, and why, is an important part of effective organizational leadership.

Power mapping can help leaders understand the formal and informal dynamics that shape decision-making and workplace culture. At the risk of sounding dramatic, it is important to consider both the positive and negative dynamics of human relationships to ensure that people remain supported, connected, and committed, even while navigating organizational noise, uncertainty, or discontent.

Leaders who maintain a realistic view of these often invisible workplace forces are better able to protect and preserve the proverbial calm before the storm, strengthening their organizations' capacity to navigate complexity and change.

3 questions to consider in the let go are:

1. Do I see weakness in others as a flaw and, if so, how might I reframe my understanding of leadership, expertise, and human potential?
2. What assumptions about work, leadership, or expertise might need to be re-examined within my organization?
3. What knowledge, expertise, or perspectives might I be overlooking because they sit outside my own experience?

Leadership Vulnerability: The Calibrate

When people work together, a natural radar kicks in as they determine their personal and professional safety within the group. In the workplace, this is critically important, as psychological safety is a key precursor to innovation. How we individually and collectively calibrate to one another matters.

High-performing organizations that expect creative outputs need to cultivate cultures and climates that not only protect the emotional well-being of staff but also respect the speed of human response. A simple example of this occurs when someone is struggling to process an event or challenge in the workplace. Leaders who pause to notice and then make the effort to check in are actively recalibrating culture by modelling the ethic of, "I see you and you matter."

There is also something important for leaders to hold in their own calibration. How leaders protect, nurture, and share their curiosity matters.

A friend recently shared a slide from a professional learning session entitled How Curiosity Helps You Power Map. It got me thinking about how workplace cultures protect certain vulnerabilities but not others.

One example is social vulnerability, something I admit I sometimes struggle with. My challenge is partly related to energy and partly related to shyness, which does not often show itself in my work life but is very much part of who I am.

For example, when I attend after-hours workplace events, I often do not have much interpersonal gas left in my tank. Socializing after a long week requires a significant amount of energy and, as an introvert, I am not particularly good at pretending otherwise. I sometimes find myself worrying about the people I didn't connect with and hoping they didn't interpret my absence as intentionally avoiding them. To be honest, I have never quite mastered the "work the room" vibe and, at this point in my life, I suspect I never will. What I do enjoy are smaller gatherings where conversations are more personal and connection feels more natural.

This has caused me to think differently about how influence operates within organizations. While some people naturally build connection through large social networks and public interactions, others build trust and influence through quieter, more personal relationships. As leaders, paying attention to these dynamics matters. Influence does not always sit with the loudest voice, the most senior title, or the person speaking most often in meetings.

Calibration requires leaders to remain curious about both the visible and invisible dynamics shaping workplace culture. Understanding who is heard, who is deferred to, who is connected, and who may be operating at the margins helps leaders create conditions where people feel safe enough to contribute, challenge thinking, and innovate together.

3 questions to consider in the calibrate are:

1. Who do people defer to in meetings? Whose approval do they seek and why?
2. Who is included in conversations after meetings and why?
3. How does my own style, energy, or presence influence who feels welcome to contribute?

Alright, this wraps up Spin Spark #4, a look at the importance of leadership vulnerability alongside a healthy dose of humility. As I wrote this Spin, I realized that while my central tenet focused on leadership vulnerability, I kept returning to the relationship between vulnerability, humility, curiosity, and influence.

Leaders who facilitate authentic interactions between staff intentionally build bridges across difference by illuminating our shared humanity. Creating space for understanding different perspectives does not necessarily require changing how people work. Rather, it often begins by nurturing how we connect as people first, alongside recognizing our own vulnerabilities. Taking the time to be real humans with one another requires not just personal bravery, but energy and intention.

Making an effort to see the world through other people's eyes, while encouraging people to ask thoughtful questions, requires curious and reflective leadership. This is where vulnerability becomes central to authentic leadership that is both enduring and powerful. This doesn't mean shifting away from strong leadership, where sometimes the answer is a solid no. It does, however, mean ensuring that humanity remains present in how we relate to others and deliver direct messages. That, too, is part of the art of strong and impactful leadership.

Author's Note: Once again, in the spirit of author integrity, I note that my Copilot AI thought partner assisted with soft-touch editing and grammatical revisions in support of publication. The ideas and reflections shared in this Spin Spark are my own and represent original thinking.