Why Hard Work Alone Won’t Make You a Better Leader

We’ve all heard it: “If you just work harder, you’ll get better results.” Perhaps that was a narrative you learned from your parents. It was more than likely role modelled for you. I certainly did.

What you see others doing around you has a very strong influence on what we believe or think is expected.

In school leadership, harder often means longer hours, more meetings, and less time for the people and projects that matter most.
The truth? Hard work without the right foundation doesn’t create progress—it creates burnout.

Earlier this year, I worked with a principal—we’ll call her Karen. She was known for her dedication. First in, last out. Every staff request is met, and every problem is solved immediately.

But behind the scenes, Karen was running on fumes. She’d lost sight of her bigger vision for the school. Her “strategy” was to handle whatever came through the door. And her inner critic whispered that if she slowed down, she’d be letting everyone down.

Karen didn’t need another time management trick. She needed a reset—a way to anchor her leadership in what actually drives progress. That’s when we started using the Three Pillars of Progress.

Most leaders try to progress through:

• Working harder

• Doing more

• Solving every problem personally

But this “do more” approach is a treadmill—you’re moving, but not necessarily forward.

1. Clarity – Knowing Exactly What You’re After

You can’t hit a target you can’t see.
Clarity means defining precisely what you want and why you want it. Many people get stuck in motion without moving forward because their vision is fuzzy or they’re chasing goals that don’t truly matter to them.

What it involves:

• Define the desired outcome: Not just “I want to be successful” but “I want to generate $X in revenue, work four days a week, and feel energised and present with my family.”

• Know your ‘why’: The emotional driver behind your goal—what makes the effort worth it.

• Identify values and standards: So your actions and decisions are aligned with what matters most.

• Focus on what matters now: Cut through noise and distractions to direct energy toward high-impact activities.
  

Without clarity:
You end up reacting to circumstances, chasing other people’s definitions of success, and constantly shifting direction.

2. Strategy – The Roadmap for Getting There

Hope is not a plan.
Once you have clarity, you need a structured way to bridge the gap between where you are and where you want to be.

What it involves:

• Reverse-engineer your goal: Break the end result into milestones and actions.

• Identify leverage points: The few actions that create the biggest results.

• Model success: Learn from others who’ve achieved similar goals, adapting their strategies to your situation.

• Stay adaptive: Strategies evolve; adjust when reality changes.
  
  

Without strategy:
You might have ambition but waste time and resources on low-return actions, burning out before you reach the goal.

3. Eliminating the Inner Critic – The Mindset Barrier

You are the gatekeeper of your own progress.
The “inner critic” is the voice of doubt, fear, and self-sabotage. It questions your worth, magnifies failures, and hesitates at opportunities.

What it involves:

• Awareness: Recognise the self-talk patterns that limit you.

• Reframing: Replace self-criticism with constructive, empowering language.

• Evidence gathering: Focus on past wins and strengths to counter doubt.

• Emotional mastery: Use practices like mindfulness, breathwork, or physiology shifts to break the emotional hold of fear.
  

Without silencing the inner critic:
Even with clarity and a great strategy, hesitation, perfectionism, or fear of failure can stop you from taking consistent action.

Why These 3 Work Together

• Clarity gives you the destination.

• Strategy gives you the map.

• Eliminating the inner critic enables you to move forward despite challenges.
  

One without the others leads to stalled progress. For example:

• Clarity + inner critic intact = knowing what you want but never starting.

• Strategy + no clarity = working hard on the wrong things.

• Clarity + strategy but with inner critic = constant second-guessing and burnout.

Reflective Prompts

• Clarity: If I could only achieve three things in my leadership this year, what would they be?

• Strategy: What’s one high-impact leadership action I could block time for every week?

• Inner Critic: What is one thought or story I tell myself that keeps me from acting—and how can I reframe it?
  

Karen didn’t start working more hours. She didn’t take on more projects. She got clear, strategic, and quieted the voice that kept her from acting boldly. Within a term, she was spending more time on what mattered most—shaping culture, developing her team, and creating a school environment that lit her up again.

Progress isn’t about doing more—it’s about building on the right foundations.

Want to review where you are at with this, and take control of all that change you have going on?

Click Here to download the Three Pillars Of Progress - Self Assessment!