161: The Untapped ROI of Leadership Development
Most business owners invest in tools, tech, and systems. But the highest ROI lever? Your people.
Leadership Development: Your Most Undervalued Growth Strategy
If your team can’t thrive without you, the problem isn’t performance—it’s undeveloped leadership.
You’ve built a company that depends on your experience, decisions, and hustle. But if your phone is always buzzing, your team isn’t underperforming—they’re underdeveloped.
In this episode of Grow With Purpose, Joey Brannon sits down with Mike LoBue to break down what Axiom does in Tier 2 Leadership Development—where high-potential team members stop being doers and start becoming leaders.
Sound Familiar?
You’re in every meeting, on every call, solving every issue
Your top performers are burning out or bottlenecked
You’ve tried tools, tech, and hiring—but nothing’s moving the needle
If that’s your reality, you don’t need better systems. You need better leaders.
⚙️ Leadership Is the Gear Shift Your Business Needs
Most business owners want freedom—but find themselves stuck working in the business, not on it.
You don’t need more of you. You need a trained, confident, equipped leadership team that moves the business forward—with or without you.
Axiom’s experience shows that real execution happens faster when leadership development enters the picture.
❌ The “I’ll Just Do It Myself” Trap
Mike calls it out: “Most owners think, ‘If I want it done right, I have to do it myself.’ But that mindset traps them in the weeds.”
It’s not that your people lack potential—they lack training. And you can’t expect leadership from people who’ve never been taught to lead.
🔄 Professional vs. Leadership Development
Here’s where most teams stall:
Professional Development = Getting better at my job
Leadership Development = Helping others get better at their jobs
One improves productivity. The other multiplies momentum.
At Axiom, we help leaders shift from task management to people development—because leadership is influence, not just responsibility.
💥 What Changes When Leadership Takes Root
You’ll see:
More initiative
Fewer fires
Better training
Ownership from the inside out
Your people don’t wait for permission—they start creating solutions.
📚 Books That Belong on Every Leader’s Shelf
Want to shape how your team thinks and leads? These books came up in this episode—and they’re essentials on our shelf:
The Speed of Trust by Stephen M.R. Covey – Trust is a business accelerator. This book shows how building trust improves execution, culture, and decision-making speed.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey – A leadership classic. Learn to prioritize what matters, shift from reactive to proactive, and build self-discipline that drives influence.
Developing the Leader Within You 2.0 by John C. Maxwell – Leadership isn’t about position—it’s about intentional growth. This book lays the groundwork for raising up true influencers.
🔁 Stop Being the Bottleneck
Joey sums it up with a challenge:
“If your business goes backward when you step away… that’s not a leadership badge—it’s a warning sign.”
What’s at stake? Your time. Your freedom. Your ability to scale. The future of your business depends on the leaders you develop today.
📈 The Payoff: Freedom, Focus, and Growth
When leadership development takes root:
You get your time back
Your team gains confidence
The business grows without you in every seat
That’s not theory. That’s what we see every week in the field with our clients.
📥 Leadership Guide Overview
This episode’s guide includes:
5 practical tools to equip your team for Tier 2 leadership
Reflection prompts to spot bottlenecks, burnout, and leadership momentum
Real-world strategies to help your best people lead—not just do more
Download the leadership guide and start multiplying your team’s capacity—without hiring anyone new.
Want to develop your next tier of leaders? Let’s start the conversation. Reach out to explore what leadership development could look like inside your business.
📧 Email: contact@axiomstrategic.com
📞 Call: (941) 404-6602
References and Downloadable Resources:
Episode 161: Leadership Guide