The Leadership Practice — 18 Jan 2026 | Letting Go to Lead Better

Leadership has a way of filling every available space.

More decisions.

More context.

More work that feels important.

Over time, clarity gets crowded out.

This week’s practice starts there.

The Prompt

“To attain knowledge, add things every day.
To attain wisdom, remove things every day.”

— Lao Tzu

That idea points to something leaders often resist.

We’re rewarded for taking on more.

But leadership rarely improves through accumulation.

It improves through discernment.

The Principle

What you protect matters less than what you’re willing to let go of.

Clarity comes from deciding what deserves your attention and what doesn’t.

The Practice

Remove one thing from your week.

Before the week begins, identify one commitment, meeting, task, or expectation that no longer earns its place.

Then choose one action:

• Stop it

• Delegate it

• Defer it

• Or redesign it so it takes less time and energy

Don’t replace it with something new. Use the space to protect what already matters.

Notice what becomes clearer when something unnecessary is gone.

Try it this week.

Reflect on what changed.

Return next week.

Leadership is earned over time.

This is the practice.

Mickey Anderson