The Leadership Selfie Problem

Every time I see a leader post a selfie with plenty of people behind them, face front and centre, I always cringe a bit... it pretends to sound team but reads as ownership to me.

The subtext is often: “Look at what I lead” rather than “Look at who did the work.”

A few observations:

·      Visual hierarchy matters. One oversized face, many small bodies → power is centralized, credit is not evenly distributed.

·      It’s performative closeness. It signals accessibility and warmth, but from a safe distance. The leader is present, yet unmistakably above.

·      It’s brand-first, team-second. These images tend to serve the leader’s personal narrative more than the team’s identity.

·      Insecure systems over-index on symbolism. When alignment or trust is fragile, leaders compensate with optics.

·      Truly confident leaders disappear in the frame. Or they don’t take the photo at all.

The irony is that the intention is usually “I’m one of you” but the effect is often “This is mine.”

The best leaders I’ve seen don’t need a wide-angle lens to prove belonging. They let the team be visible… even if that means they’re not.