{"id":212509,"date":"2026-04-16T20:42:35","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T03:42:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/?p=212509"},"modified":"2026-04-16T20:42:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T03:42:35","slug":"two-types-of-leaders-which-one-are-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/two-types-of-leaders-which-one-are-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Types of Leaders: Which One Are You?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In all my years of coaching leaders \u2014 executives, pastors, ministry professionals, and marketplace leaders \u2014 I've noticed a pattern that never changes. It doesn't matter what industry you're in, what size your organization is, or how long you've been in leadership. Within minutes of introducing a new framework or strategy, I can tell exactly which category a leader falls into. And that category will determine nearly everything about their results.<\/p>\n

There are two types of leaders. Not good and bad. Not smart and struggling. Two types \u2014 defined entirely by how they respond to new information. And if you're honest with yourself, you already know which one you are.<\/p>\n

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The First Type: The Protector<\/h2>\n

When I bring a new framework into a room, the first type of leader responds almost immediately with resistance. Not aggression \u2014 resistance. It sounds like this:<\/p>\n

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\"That's great in theory, but you don't understand our staff.\"<\/em><\/p>\n

\"We tried something like this before and it failed.\"<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Our culture is just different.\"<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Sound familiar? These responses feel like critical thinking. They feel like wisdom born from experience. And sometimes, they even are. But more often than not, they're something else entirely. They're self-protection dressed up as discernment.<\/p>\n

When a leader's first instinct is to build a case for why something won't work, they're not primarily protecting their organization. They're protecting themselves \u2014 from the risk of change, from the discomfort of admitting something could be better, from the vulnerability of trying and potentially failing. Change is risky. New frameworks are uncomfortable. And for leaders who have built their identity around what's already working, a new model can feel like an implicit critique of everything they've done before.<\/p>\n

I get it. I really do. But here's the problem: the cost of staying stuck is always \u2014 always \u2014 greater than the cost of trying something new.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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The Second Type: The Builder<\/h2>\n

The second type of leader hears the exact same framework. Sits in the exact same room. Faces the exact same organizational challenges. And responds completely differently:<\/p>\n

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\"Okay, how do we adapt this for our context?\"<\/em><\/p>\n

\"What would need to be true for this to work here?\"<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Where do we start?\"<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Same information. Completely different posture. And here's what I want you to notice: the second group isn't smarter. They don't have better teams, bigger budgets, or easier circumstances. In many cases, they're leading in harder situations than the first group. The difference isn't capacity. It's belief<\/strong> \u2014 specifically, their belief about what's possible.<\/p>\n

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What Carol Dweck Got Right<\/h2>\n

Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck spent decades researching why some people grow through challenges while others stall. Her conclusion: it comes down to mindset.<\/p>\n

A fixed mindset<\/strong> operates on the belief that your abilities, your circumstances, and your outcomes are largely predetermined. When a challenge appears, the brain goes looking for evidence that it can't be done. It finds that evidence quickly, because it's always available.<\/p>\n

A growth mindset<\/strong> operates differently. It starts from the conviction that there are endless possibilities for overcoming any challenge \u2014 and that the leader's job is to find them. Not blind optimism. Not toxic positivity. A grounded, settled belief in one's own capacity to figure things out.<\/p>\n

Dweck's research was focused primarily on individuals. But after years of culture coaching work, I'd argue that organizations take on the mindset of their leaders.<\/strong> A fixed-mindset leader builds a fixed-mindset culture \u2014 one that's conflict-averse, change-resistant, and quietly stuck. A growth-mindset leader creates the conditions for something completely different.<\/p>\n

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The Leadership Test No Assessment Can Give You<\/h2>\n

I've used a lot of leadership assessments over the years \u2014 Enneagram, Working Genius, StrengthsFinder, DISC, and more. They're all valuable. But none of them tell you as much about a leader as this single question:<\/p>\n

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When someone brings you a new idea, what is your first internal<\/em> response?<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Not your polished, professional response. Not what you say in the meeting. Your first internal response. The one that shows up before you've had a chance to think about how it will land. That response \u2014 whether it's \"here's why this won't work\"<\/em> or \"here's how we could make this work\"<\/em> \u2014 reveals the operating system beneath your leadership.<\/p>\n

Real leaders \u2014 the kind who build cultures that actually last \u2014 don't wait for perfect conditions. They build the conditions they need. They don't wait for their team to be ready for change. They lead the team toward readiness. They don't wait for a new idea to be risk-free before they engage it. They manage the risk as they go.<\/p>\n

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So What Do You Do With This?<\/h2>\n

First \u2014 be honest.<\/strong> Which type of leader are you, really? Not in your best moments. In your default moments. When no one is watching, when the pressure is high, and when something new lands on your desk that asks more of you than you're sure you have to give \u2014 what is your first move?<\/p>\n

Second \u2014 remember that mindset is not fixed.<\/strong> That's almost too on-the-nose, but it's true. A fixed mindset is not a permanent condition. It's a habit of thought, and habits can change. The first step is awareness. Noticing the moment you start building a case against something before you've genuinely explored it. That noticing \u2014 that moment of self-awareness \u2014 is where growth begins.<\/p>\n

Third \u2014 surround yourself with builders.<\/strong> Fixed-mindset cultures are often self-reinforcing. If every voice in the room leads with \"why it won't work,\" it starts to feel like wisdom. Seek out leaders who ask better questions. Let their posture challenge yours.<\/p>\n

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The Work Is Worth It<\/h2>\n

The leaders I've had the privilege of walking alongside who do this work \u2014 who choose to shift from protection to possibility \u2014 don't just get better results. They become better leaders. More courageous. More curious. More effective at building cultures where others can thrive.<\/p>\n

That's what the 4SIGHT Group is about. Not a quick framework fix, but real culture work \u2014 the kind that changes how an organization thinks, operates, and grows. If this resonated with you, I'd love to connect. The link is in my bio, or reach out directly. Let's do some real work together.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What if the biggest predictor of your leadership effectiveness isn’t your experience, your team, or your resources \u2014 but your first internal response to a new idea?<\/p>\n

After years of coaching executives, pastors, and ministry leaders, I’ve identified two types of leaders \u2014 not defined by skill or intelligence, but by a single instinct. One protects. One builds. And the difference between them shapes everything about the cultures they create.<\/p>\n

Which one are you?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":212516,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[31],"tags":[91,51,113,205,112,190,204,58,87,119],"class_list":["post-212509","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-main","tag-coaching","tag-culture","tag-decision-making","tag-fixed-mindset","tag-goals","tag-growth","tag-growth-mindset","tag-leadership","tag-work","tag-workplace-culture"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/ruqhpukrn7c.webp?fit=1600%2C1067&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pzg9k-Thz","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":210391,"url":"https:\/\/jonplotner.com\/v1\/the-ripple-effect-of-contagious-positivity-in-teams\/","url_meta":{"origin":212509,"position":0},"title":"The Ripple Effect of Contagious Positivity in Teams","author":"Jon Plotner","date":"March 24, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Some people possess a remarkable ability to emanate contagious positivity, uplifting their environment even amidst adversity. 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