Leadership Begins at Home: Why Presence Shapes Everything You Lead
Your leadership at home becomes the emotional foundation you lead from everywhere else. Strengthen the rhythms inside your home, and you strengthen every other part of your leadership.
There’s a leadership truth I’ve come to appreciate more deeply with every season of life:
Your leadership at home shapes your leadership everywhere else.
Home is the place where your values are lived, not just stated.
It’s where trust is formed, where emotional stability is either reinforced or eroded, and where the people closest to you experience the truest version of your leadership.
Home is the foundation you lead from.
At the center of that foundation is presence — not proximity, not perfection, but intentional presence.
Presence that adapts as seasons change, but never disappears.
This past year brought new rhythms into our home. Our oldest stepped into adulthood, and presence began to take a new shape. It became shared Bible studies through an app, encouraging messages, and phone calls across the distance.
At the same time, this season opened space for deeper connection with our younger son and more intentional support for my spouse.
Different rhythms.
Same calling.
Be present for the people who matter most.
Scripture captures this truth with quiet strength:
“In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence,
and his children will have a refuge.”
— Proverbs 14:26 (ESV)
That word refuge matters.
A refuge is not built in moments of intensity.
It’s built through stability.
Through consistency.
Through leadership that can be felt, not just heard.
This is where leadership at home becomes leadership everywhere else.
Patrick Lencioni says it well:
“Great teams are built on trust. So are great families.”
Trust doesn’t come from grand gestures or perfectly executed plans.
It grows through everyday choices — the tone you set, the attention you give, and the rhythms you create.
As we look toward 2026, here are three practices that help leaders strengthen their leadership at home — and, by extension, every other place they lead.
1. Be Present
Presence is your most powerful form of influence.
Not because you are always physically nearby, but because when you are present, you are engaged. Listening. Paying attention. Not distracted.
Presence communicates value.
At home, people don’t need flawless leadership.
They need leadership that shows up — consistently and intentionally.
Presence looks different in every season.
Sometimes it’s time around the table.
Sometimes it’s a conversation before bed.
Sometimes it’s a message sent across the distance just to say, “I’m thinking about you.”
What matters most isn’t the format.
It’s the intentionality behind it.
2. Create Rhythms
Strong families aren’t built on intensity.
They’re built on rhythms.
Small, repeatable moments that anchor connection.
Rhythms reduce uncertainty.
They create predictability, safety, and shared expectation.
A weekly meal.
A standing conversation.
A consistent check-in.
A shared practice.
These moments don’t need to be elaborate. In fact, the simplest rhythms are often the most powerful because they’re sustainable.
Over time, rhythms do something remarkable:
they make connection feel normal — not forced.
And that sense of stability becomes the emotional foundation your leadership rests on everywhere else.
3. Speak Life
Words carry weight — especially at home.
Encouragement isn’t about hype or flattery.
It’s about naming what matters, affirming growth, and reinforcing identity.
When leaders speak life at home, they help build resilience.
They remind their family who they are — even when circumstances are changing.
Encouraging words don’t ignore challenges.
They help people face them with confidence.
And when encouragement is consistent, it becomes a quiet strength others carry with them long after the conversation ends.
As you prepare for 2026, remember this:
Your leadership at home is part of your leadership story.
When your home is strengthened, your leadership everywhere else is steadied.
This week’s Study Guide is designed to help you:
reflect on your current rhythms
strengthen intentional presence
and begin shaping patterns that will carry into the year ahead
👉 Download the Week 3 Study Guide and continue building your 2026 Leadership Guidepost.
The Leader You Become in 2026 Starts Now
Strong years don’t begin in January. They begin in December. In Week 1 of the SSLW December Reset, we explore why intentional reflection today shapes your leadership tomorrow — and we begin the journey toward your 2026 Leadership Guidepost.
Why December Matters More Than January
There’s something unique about December.
On the surface, it looks like a slowdown month — schedules ease up, routines relax, and many leaders shift into “coast mode.” But the more I’ve paid attention to my own leadership rhythms, the more I’ve realized something:
December determines January.
I’ve had years where I entered a new year aligned, focused, and grounded.
And I’ve had years where I entered scattered and exhausted.
And as I look back, the consistent theme is clear:
The decisions I made in December shaped the direction I carried into the new year.
Intentionality Sets the Direction
Proverbs 4:26 encourages us to “ponder the path of your feet,” reminding us that strong leadership begins with intentional steps. It’s rarely the big moments that shape a leader — it’s the small daily choices when no one’s watching.
John Maxwell frames it well:
“You will never change your life until you change something you do daily.”
Three Spheres of Leadership
Whether we realize it or not, every leader carries influence in three arenas:
Lead Myself
Lead My Family
Lead My Team
These three spheres anchor the entire December Reset journey.
The One Word That Shapes a Year
Throughout this month, we’ll also work toward identifying your One Word for 2026 — a simple, powerful word that brings clarity and direction to your leadership.
I’ve used a “one word” focus for several years, and it’s made a significant difference in helping me stay grounded and intentional. Leaders like Craig Groeschel and Jon Gordon teach this approach because it simplifies your focus and strengthens your direction.
Not a resolution.
Not a long list of goals.
Just one clear word that shapes the way you lead yourself, your family, and your team.
Week 1: Where Am I Now?
Before choosing a word or setting any goals for 2026, we begin with honest reflection:
Where am I right now as a leader?
Not where you wish you were.
Not where you “should” be.
Where you truly are.
This week’s worksheet will guide that reflection — and help you start preparing your 2026 Leadership Guidepost.
Because strong years don’t start in January.
They start now.