Navigating Your Leadership Journey: Tailored Tips for Black Men in Mid-Level Roles
By Dominic George · August 23rd 2025

Happy Saturday! Word Count: 1506…11.36 minutes. Copy edited by Dominic George

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Vision Leadership for Life newsletter, designed with the specific challenges faced by Black men in mid-level leadership positions in mind. We understand the unique journey you’re on, and our goal is to provide practical insights to help you thrive in your professional evolution. So, lets dive into today’s topic and Elevate Your Leadership.

The Difference Between Leadership Style and Performance for Black Men

Black men, there comes a point in every leadership journey where the stakes rise, the expectations multiply, and the spotlight gets brighter. At that level, the conversations shift. Suddenly, leadership is not just about whether you can get the job done, but about how you get it done.

This is where the difference between leadership style and leadership performance becomes critical. Too often, these two concepts are collapsed into one. But they are not the same. Style is the doorway. Performance is the proof. Both matter, but in different ways. And the ability to master the distinction is what propels Black men from middle management into senior leadership opportunities.

Leadership Style: The Way You Show Up

Your leadership style is your way of leading people. It is the presence you bring into a room, the way you communicate under pressure, the decisions you make when things are unclear, and the culture you create for your team.

Style is not about imitation. It is not about trying to sound or act like anyone else. Style is about consistency, clarity, and presence. When your leadership style reflects your values, your authenticity, and your discipline, it becomes a source of power.

For Black men, style is often the first thing people notice. Your voice, your cadence, your presence, your calmness, or your intensity. What matters most is that your style communicates confidence and clarity while staying aligned with who you are. Style should open doors, not close them.

Leadership Performance: The Evidence of Impact

If style is the doorway, performance is what keeps you in the room. Performance is the measurable impact of your leadership. Did your team deliver results. Did you advance the mission of the organization. Did you elevate the people you lead and create opportunities for them to thrive.

Performance is not about perfection. It is about outcomes that can be traced back to your leadership decisions. A senior leader is measured not only by their individual excellence, but by how effectively they lead others to perform at a high level.

For Black men seeking senior leadership opportunities, performance is the undeniable proof of readiness. It silences doubt and provides evidence that your leadership belongs at the table where the highest stakes decisions are made.

Why the Distinction Matters for Black Men

Black men moving toward executive leadership must understand that style and performance are not interchangeable. You cannot rely on performance alone and assume it will speak for itself. In senior leadership, visibility matters. And you cannot rely on style alone, because without results, style becomes empty optics.

The key is integration. When style and performance reinforce one another, you create what I call the Authentic Edge. When style and performance align, you stop waiting to be noticed and start positioning yourself for elevation. You shift from being seen as capable to being recognized as ready. And you create the kind of momentum that opens doors not just for yourself, but for every other Black man who will follow your path.

Additional Tip for Black Men: Make your results visible. Performance without visibility can limit your advancement. Do not rely on others to notice your work. Communicate your outcomes clearly and confidently.

Solution Shift: Move from quietly producing results to consistently sharing the evidence of your leadership impact.

Leadership Style and Your Leadership Performance

The Authentic Edge: Style and Performance Aligned

The Authentic Edge is when your leadership style reflects your identity and values while your performance proves your impact. It is when how you lead and what you produce are in harmony. This combination creates momentum and presence that is impossible to ignore.

The Authentic Edge is not about assimilation. It is about alignment. Black men who lead with the Authentic Edge do not compromise who they are to fit in. Instead, they refine how they show up so that their performance gains the visibility it deserves.

This is the work of advancing into senior leadership. It is not about pretending. It is about leading with intentionality, clarity, and authenticity.

Black Men, Here is the Call

The path to senior leadership requires more than simply doing your work well. It requires clarity on both your leadership style and your leadership performance.

Ask yourself:
Is my performance undeniable. Do the results I deliver reflect the vision and impact of a senior leader.

Then ask:
Does my style showcase my performance. When I walk into a room, do people see and hear the leadership I have already demonstrated.

These are not questions of comparison. They are questions of alignment. They are questions that every Black man must answer if he is serious about moving into the highest levels of leadership.

When style and performance align, you stop waiting to be noticed and start positioning yourself for elevation. You shift from being seen as capable to being recognized as ready. And you create the kind of momentum that opens doors not just for yourself, but for every other Black man who will follow your path.

Additional Tip for Black Men: Lead authentically at every level. Your values and lived experiences are not barriers to senior leadership. They are your competitive advantage. Leading authentically creates trust and credibility.

Solution Shift: Move from performing for acceptance to embracing your authentic leadership DNA as the source of your advancement.

Closing Thoughts:

In progression forward, here’s four actionable shifts towards senior leadership

1. Refine your leadership style. Choose a style that communicates clarity, presence, and authenticity. Ensure that the way you lead reflects the values you want to be remembered for.

2. Make your performance visible. Track your results and tell the story of your leadership impact. Do not wait for others to notice. Create a clear narrative of your readiness for senior roles.

3. Align style with performance. Let your presence amplify your results. Speak about outcomes with confidence. Show how your way of leading directly produces measurable success.

4. Lead with authenticity. Never trade who you are for access. Your experiences, values, and identity are your leadership DNA. When you lead authentically, you bring a unique edge to senior leadership that cannot be replicated.

That’s the new path forward.

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Fellas, your journey is both unique and powerful. If you’re ready to start leading from your authentic edge, then your on the roadmap for greatness. When you’re leading from within, you are not only advancing your career but also paving the way for future leaders.

Feel free to reach out for personalized coaching or share your success stories.

Your success is our shared triumph.

Real Talk: If you’re ready to:

• Reclaim your voice in high-stakes spaces.

• Lead with strategy, not survival.

• Build a legacy that doesn’t require you to perform to belong.

You don’t have to lose yourself to lead. You just have to reclaim who you are, and lead from there.

Have a POWERFUL Day!

Dominic George

Founder, Vision Leadership for LIFE - LLC

Intellectual Property Notice:
© 2025 Vision Leadership for LIFE - LLC. All rights reserved.
The content, concepts, and original expressions in this newsletter are the exclusive intellectual property of Dominic George and Vision Leadership for LIFE, LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form without prior written permission. This newsletter is intended for personal development and leadership growth. Respect the work. Honor the source.

The Authentic Edge™ framework and related materials are proprietary to Vision Leadership for LIFE - LLC.