Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of talking with many leaders who have shaped systems far larger than themselves. What stays with me most is not their titles or accomplishments, but how they understand power and responsibility.
In a conversation with my colleague and friend, Dr. Rich Carmona, former U.S. Surgeon General, he shared a story that touched me deeply. Long before his national roles when the scope and visibility of his leadership blossomed, Rich was a 12-year-old boy growing up in an impoverished neighborhood. His mother worked nights, and when she left the house, she placed responsibility for his younger siblings squarely on his shoulders.
At the time, he didn’t think of this as leadership training. He was simply doing what needed to be done. Looking back, he sees it differently.
Only later did he realize what that period had taught him: leadership is always about being responsible for the lives and futures of others. What changes over time is not the nature of leadership, but its scope and scale.
This perspective feels especially relevant today, when leadership is often framed in terms of influence, authority, or outcomes. Rich’s reflection reminds us that leadership, at its core, is a form of stewardship. Whether you are caring for family members, leading a team, serving a community, or shaping a global system, you are holding something precious in trust.
TRUST IS THE BEDROCK OF LEADERSHIP
Across the world today, trust in institutions is eroding. The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer finds that trust has declined to the point that seven in ten people are now hesitant to trust those who differ from them, a shift that undermines cooperation, slows progress, and deepens societal fragmentation.
Many people feel uncertain about whether institutions and those in positions of power truly act in service of the greater good. In this climate, trust is not a “nice to have” leadership quality. It is foundational.
This echoes one of the most consistent teachings from Rich’s life experiences: trust is the bedrock of effective leadership.
You can be given a title. You can be appointed to a role. But trust is never assigned. It is earned. Without it, leadership remains transactional at best. With it, people are willing to follow you into uncertainty, complexity, and even personal risk, because they believe in your integrity and intentions.
Rich has seen this truth play out across radically different contexts—from the military to medicine, from boardrooms to public service. The environments change. The stakes change. The principle does not. When people trust that a leader is acting with integrity, rather than self-interest, something profound happens. They become willing to subordinate their own immediate concerns for the greater good of what they are trying to build together.
This is where leadership and thriving so powerfully meet.
Thriving leadership is not about being endlessly positive or avoiding hard realities. It is about creating conditions where people feel safe enough, valued enough, and resourced enough to bring their full judgment, care, and humanity to the work at hand. Trust makes this possible.
WITH TRUST IN PLACE, SOMETHING GREATER BECOMES POSSIBLE
During our conversation, Rich spoke about leadership as a pathway to peace. Not peace as a political construct or a distant aspiration, but peace as a lived experience within human systems. When leaders lead with genuine trust, fear diminishes. When fear diminishes, reactivity softens. And when people feel seen, respected, and included, dignity begins to replace defensiveness.
Peace, in this sense, does not begin in treaties or institutions. It begins in our nervous systems, our relationships, and the everyday decisions we make under pressure. It shows up in how we listen, how we weigh consequences, and how we treat people when the stakes are high.
This frame of reference matters because it brings peace down to earth. It places it within reach of every person, regardless of role or ideology. The way you run a meeting. The way you respond to dissent. The way you make decisions that affect others’ lives. These are not neutral acts. They either amplify tension or reduce it.
Seen this way, thriving leadership becomes more than a performance strategy. It becomes a way of caring for the human systems we are entrusted to lead.
LEADERSHIP IS A LIFELONG EDUCATION
Rich often says that every experience (including every success and mistake) can deepen our understanding of people and ourselves. Over time, we’re invited to grow not just in competence, but in consciousness of the impact we have on others and the systems we shape.
What I love most about Rich’s wisdom is how accessible it is. You don’t need a national platform to practice it. You don’t need a formal title. You only need to recognize where you already hold responsibility for others and choose to lead that responsibility with integrity, care, and awareness.
So, I’ll leave you with a few questions to sit with:
- Where in your life or work are you being trusted with the wellbeing or future of others?
- What signals does your leadership send about whether people feel safe, respected, and included?
- How might the way you lead today be shaping the conditions for others not just to perform, but to thrive?
Leadership, at every scale, leaves a human imprint. The question is not whether we are shaping the future, but how.
I am grateful to be on this journey with you,
Renee
About Dr. Rich Carmona
In 2002, Dr. Carmona was nominated by the president and unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate to become the 17th Surgeon General of the United States. Dr. Carmona was selected because of his extensive experience in public health, clinical sciences, health care management, preparedness, and his commitment to prevention as an effective means to improve public health and reduce health care costs while improving the quality and quantity of life. In 2006, Vice Admiral Carmona successfully completed the statutory four-year term of the U.S. Surgeon General and was named to the position of vice chairman for Canyon Ranch. He also served as CEO of the company’s Health division and president of Canyon Ranch Institute. Dr. Carmona continues his Canyon Ranch leadership role as the Chief of Health Innovations.
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I cofounded Wisdom Works in 1999 with the belief that thriving and wisdom are the foundation of truly effective leadership. If you’d like to explore how these principles could transform your team or organization, please reach out to me at renee@wisdom-works.com.
Wisdom Works’ Be Well Lead Well® newsletter features conversations, strategies, and resources to empower a global movement of change leaders committed to a world where everyone thrives. I’m grateful to Dr. Rich Carmona for the generosity of his wisdom in this month’s conversation. This newsletter was refined with support from Sage, Wisdom Works’ AI thought partner.
