What if the biggest threat to your career's success is not a lack of vision, but your ability to bring that vision to life without burning everything down in the process?
In business, execution is often treated like the final checkbox in a plan: “Just get it done.” But the truth is, most leadership failures do not stem from bad ideas. They stem from poor execution.
And poor execution does not always look like failure on the surface.
Sometimes it looks like success, but with hidden collateral damage.
Picture this. A leader pulls off a last-minute pivot on a product launch. Disaster is avoided. But along the way, they lose a top-performing team member, overspend their budget, and damage a critical client relationship.
Did they succeed? Technically, yes. But the damage caused will ripple through the organization for months or even years.
That is not mastery. That is survival at a cost.
The Problem: Finishing Isn’t the Goal, Fluent Execution Is
Execution is one of the most rare and misunderstood skills in leadership.
Kevin O’Leary, in a recent interview, emphasized that execution is the number one trait he looks for in a leader. But he left it undefined. As Jorge Loebl points out in our recent podcast, that vagueness is part of the problem.
“Good execution includes all these and many more skills applied the right way, at the right time, and in the right situation,” Jorge said. “Welcome aboard. That is difficult to find.”
Execution is not a single skill. It is the orchestration of many leadership skills, such as communication, planning, delegation, feedback, decision-making, strategic thinking, and the ability to pivot. These must be applied with situational fluency.
And here is where it gets even more nuanced. As Jorge explains, execution is not just solving the problem. It is solving it without unnecessary collateral damage.
“If I, in the process, kill my whole crew and destroy half the ship, if I don’t sink, it was successful. But that is only partly good execution. A good execution would have been that I anticipated it, that I prepared my crew, and that it didn’t destroy my crew nor my ship in the process.”
Most leaders do not fail because they did not work hard or plan well. They fail because they did not adapt fast enough, did not activate the right skill at the right time, or did not read the situation with enough clarity to prevent damage.
The Goal: Replace Firefighting with Fluent, Intentional Leadership
Execution should not be a desperate act of salvaging strategy.
It should be a practiced rhythm of skills applied intentionally, with foresight and agility. Jorge is clear about this.
“You need the whole set of skills, people skills, system skills, delegation, planning, strategic thinking. It applies to the very top of the corporation, as it applies to the middle management and lower management. Everybody needs all the skills.”
The goal is to move from reactive decision-making to strategic fluidity.
Great execution means getting the right things done, at the right time, with the right people, while maintaining team health, budget discipline, and market confidence.
When execution is mastered, leaders no longer feel like they are firefighting. They are orchestrating. They are in control.
Why Execution Amplifies Every Leadership Skill You Have
When you understand how to execute well, everything else improves.
- Team trust increases because decisions feel thoughtful and purposeful.
- Client confidence grows because results are delivered with consistency and composure.
- Organizational momentum builds because your leadership does not rely on high-stress rescues.
Execution becomes the multiplier that makes every other leadership skill matter.
Jorge described this clearly in the podcast. He emphasized that execution is not static, it is dynamic.
“Sometimes it is experience, knowing which skill I'm going to pick now and connect and apply, to which extent, with what strength, with what urgency to solve the particular situation.”
This is not about balance. It is about responsiveness. You must be able to shift from commanding to listening, from driving to supporting, depending on what the moment calls for.
Discover Where Your Execution Gaps Are Hiding
Most leaders do not realize they have an execution gap until they are deep in a crisis.
Execution gaps can be caused by:
- Overconfidence in the original plan, which leads to rigidity
- Ego-driven decision-making, which limits collaboration
- Habitual overuse of certain skills, while neglecting others
- Disconnected communication, especially under pressure
Jorge challenges leaders to rethink how they view these gaps.
“Failing to anticipate, failing to prepare, these are the silent killers. And we’ve had situations where we said, ‘Had we done this earlier, we would be in a better place today.’”
The first step is reflection.
1-on-1 Coaching with Jorge and our collective of Revolving Change Mentors allow leaders to diagnose where projects or initiatives went sideways. When you properly discover what you missed, you can begin to change how you lead.
Design an Execution Blueprint You Can Trust
Once you identify where execution has failed or faltered, the next step is designing a strategy for executing well under pressure.
You need to build fluency in switching between leadership skills as the situation evolves.
- Know when to communicate and when to command
- Know when to delegate and when to roll up your sleeves
- Know when to press forward and when to pause and reassess
Jorge puts it this way:
“Now I need to give one-way communication. I need to instruct people. We are in a crisis. So that is the skill that is most needed from me, expected from me now. That doesn’t dismerit or take away the importance of all the other skills.”
We help leaders create Execution Blueprints that map which skill to activate based on specific scenarios.
We also help them understand their ego triggers. These are the moments when confidence turns into stubbornness, and they must learn how to course-correct.
Equally important is recognizing that no one leader can be great at everything.
“Surround yourself with people who complement your skills,” Jorge says. “We’re not scared of somebody being better than we are. We like people who are better than we are.”
Execution is not just an individual skill. It is a team sport.
Deliver with Rhythm, Alignment, and Real-World Practice
Execution is not a one-time event. It is a continuous rhythm that must be built, practiced, and refined.
Our leadership development programs integrate real-world simulations, skill sprint challenges, and execution journaling to help leaders turn practice into performance.
- Weekly execution challenges focus on one core leadership skill at a time
- Journaling helps track what worked, what didn’t, and how to improve
- Peer collaboration fosters real-time adaptation and learning
“You’ll learn a skill,” Jorge said, “but if you don’t use it on a regular basis, you start losing the edge. We keep the skills alive, in shape, connected, and moving forward.”
The final ingredient is humility.
The ability to reflect, recalibrate, and try again.
Jorge ends with this reminder:
“Ego is not a good amigo. Be humble in understanding your limitations. Grow from there. Develop them. Surround yourself with people who complement you. You will have an unbeatable, irresistible, unstoppable team.”
The Takeaway: Execution Turns Strategy into Reality
Execution is the crucible where all other leadership skills are tested.
Without execution, strategy is just expensive storytelling. With it, leadership becomes tangible, impactful, and sustainable.
If you are tired of repeating the same mistakes, losing people to burnout, or wondering why your best ideas fall flat, it is time to build your execution muscle.
Execution is not a nice-to-have. It is the difference between momentum and mediocrity, between survival and scale.
Now is the time to stop surviving and start executing with precision.
Execution looks different depending on where you sit in the leadership structure. Explore how it plays out across roles:
For Emerging Leaders and High-Potential Professionals:
Execution Starts With You: Building Real Leadership From Day One
For Mid-Level Managers and Team Leaders:
Chaos Coordinator: How Mid-Level Leaders Execute Across the Messy Middle
For Entrepreneurs, Founders, and Senior Executives:
Execution Is Survival: The Leadership Skill Entrepreneurs and Executives Can’t Ignore
Turn Execution into Your Leadership Advantage
If you’re done watching your best ideas fall flat due to poor follow-through, it's time to develop execution fluency.
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