Leadership isn’t about proving your worth through other people’s reputations—it’s about trust, vision, and helping your team succeed. Name-dropping might seem harmless, especially for relational leaders or Connectors in the GiANT 5 Voices framework, but it can quietly erode credibility and culture. True influence doesn’t come from who you know—it comes from how you lead.

For executives and senior leaders worldwide, this is not just a geopolitical headline—it’s a cautionary tale about how quickly credibility can unravel when leadership defaults to domination instead of stewardship.