What happens with a lot of leaders is that their leadership style

Hear, O seekers of wisdom, the counsel of Henry Cloud, who declared: “What happens with a lot of leaders is that their leadership style is like ADD; they are all over the place with different ideas. They could be driving one idea forward but then move on to something else too soon.” In this truth is revealed both a warning and a lesson: that scattered energy, though passionate, is powerless; that without focus, vision dissolves into fragments, and the promise of greatness fades before it ever bears fruit.

For know this: the world is not changed by many beginnings, but by the endurance to carry a single beginning into completion. The earth does not yield harvest to the farmer who plants today and abandons the field tomorrow. It yields to the one who tends the seed with patience, waters it with diligence, and guards it until it grows into abundance. So it is with leadership. A leader who leaps from vision to vision without finishing the work leads his people not forward, but in circles. His words inspire, but his hands fail to build.

Consider the tale of Alexander the Great. His ambition was boundless, his mind teeming with visions of conquest. Yet unlike the fickle leader who abandons one task for another, Alexander drove his campaigns with relentless focus. From Macedonia to the farthest reaches of Asia, he pursued a single vision—to unite the world under his banner. It was this clarity, this refusal to turn aside, that gave him the name “Great.” Had he scattered his strength across fleeting whims, his legacy would have been forgotten dust.

And yet, history also tells of those who faltered because they could not hold to one course. Think of emperors and kings who began mighty works—canals half-dug, reforms half-written, wars half-won—only to abandon them for new desires. Their reigns left no enduring mark, for they were undone by their own lack of constancy. Such is the fate of the leader whose leadership style is restless and unstable: they inspire beginnings but fail to deliver destinies.

The meaning of Cloud’s words is thus clear: a true leader must discipline his mind and heart. He must not chase every passing idea, for even good ideas, when pursued without persistence, die barren. Instead, he must learn to discern which vision is worthy, to choose it with wisdom, and to pursue it with steadfast resolve. Leadership is not the art of many starts, but of faithful completion.

The lesson, O listener, is a stern and shining one: be wary of scattering your energy. When you are tempted by many new paths, pause and ask: which one is worth my strength? Which one will bear fruit if I do not abandon it? For it is better to bring one worthy work to completion than to begin ten and finish none. The world does not remember the dreams you dreamed, but the work you finished.

Practical action lies before you: write down your visions, but choose the one that matters most, and commit yourself to it. Resist the urge to chase every new idea. Build habits of focus: set clear goals, measure your progress, and do not abandon the course until it is done. Train your heart to find satisfaction not in starting, but in finishing. For in finishing lies the power of true leadership.

Thus remember Henry Cloud’s wisdom: the fickle leader inspires momentary excitement, but the steadfast leader builds enduring legacies. Let your leadership not be scattered like sparks in the wind, but steady like a flame that burns until the task is done. For such a flame can light the world.