We hear it all the time: A person in a position of authority or power—often in the C-suite—refers to a talented team member as a future leader. While meant as a compliment, this language has negative “unintended consequences,” as Robert Merton described, which have an opposite effect than the speaker meant to convey. Why is the term “future leader” one to avoid?

There are three core reasons to rethink calling someone a future leader in your organization or team.

IT’S TOXIC AND DEMORALIZING

That term has an inherent condescending nature, implying as it does that the person to whom we are referring is not yet worthy of being called a leader, with its implicit meaning that “I’m a leader, but you are not . . . yet.”  It conveys that they will only become a leader at some undetermined point in the future, only when they have arrived at a higher level, through some unclear and murky pathway yet to be determined.

It ossifies us and our teams into hierarchical layers without value and a nearly feudal feel to those at the lower levels. It’s demoralizing because it focuses on the future, not the hard work we already do in difficult situations.

EMPHASIZES THE WRONG TIME

It implies that your change to leader is only in the future when you have arrived at a higher level (which your boss has already attained). It can only occur “someday” after a typically obscure and mystical process of climbing the ladder.  It can often imply, unintentionally, that certain people have reached the heights of being a leader . . . but you still have a ways to go.

Don’t ask, “How do I become a leader?” Instead focus on, “How will I lead today?” All of us at every level are leading already. That is inspiring, while being called a future leader, means it is something we aspire to. Don’t aspire to be a leader someday. Inspire yourself your team, and your colleagues because you are a leader today.

And let’s be clear many times, some so-called leaders are certain they are the most important person in the room. But any true leader knows their job is to ensure everyone on the team feels they are the most important person in the room.

The answers are not above us or beyond us. They are within and among us.

Does that mean we shouldn’t seek to improve? Of course not. But a developing, improving, or emerging leader is completely different than a future leader. I am all in favor of investing in skill development, but that is to make you a better leader in an iterative fashion, not to make you worthy of the honorific “leader.” The focus is on leading today and then leading even better tomorrow, not hoping to get there at some fuzzy, unfocused future time.

LEADERSHIP IS WORTHLESS

Wait . . . leadership is worthless? If leadership is worthless, why are there so many articles, books, and podcasts on the topic?

Leadership is worthless because it is a noun, just something you say. But leading is priceless because it is what we do. It is a verb, reflecting our actions. And actions are both more valuable and more labor-intensive than mere words. (Do words and language matter? Of course, but only since they inspire actions and lead in the active voice.)

Aristotle correctly observed that “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence is not a virtue, but a habit.” Future leader nearly always focuses on what is said: the incessant lists, courses, and materials our organizations often demand.

Emphasize the fact that we are all leading, all the time, whatever our role on the team and in the organization. Leading is not a future state; it is where we find ourselves all day every day. Don’t aspire to be a future leader. You already are, leading yourself and your part of the team. Ensure your values and those of the organization are reflected in your actions, not just your words. Don’t just say team, play team.

If future leader isn’t the right term, then what is? Here’s a suggestion. Make sure your team knows that you know that they are leading already, through every action they take in interacting with the team and those the team serves—not just with their words but by what they do.

Make a habit of noticing and commenting upon these actions in a public, positive, and reinforcing way. Ensuring others hear appreciation and praise will inspire them and cause them to aspire to it.

Which would you prefer to hear said about you?

“Someday you may be a future leader.”

Or . . .

“I noticed how you handled that situation today, well done. You are leading from the front! Would you be willing to share that at our next meeting?”