Leadership training does not lead to behavior changes in attendees.

Behavior changes require regular learning, reflection, practice and repetition.

A Continuous Leadership Practice enables people to absorb, practice and implement specific lessons over time.

I am going to come right out and say it:

“Leaders are not developed by attending a leadership training course.”

As provocative as the statement may be, I stand by it. After more than three decades of high-end management consulting and leadership coaching at some of the largest organizations on the planet, I can tell you sending someone to a leadership training session for a week does not a leader make!

Sure, a training course can raise awareness. Some even provide some scenario-based practice sessions. However, by day three back at work, the leader has already defaulted back to their “natural” habits and rituals for leading, making the training they received a fond memory.

Why we think we can help people change by sending them to a training course for a few days is beyond me. Does a single week of education ever lead to deep and lasting change? Not really, because knowing what to do is not the same as doing it.

Yet, according to a special report by Fortune magazine:[i] "The global corporate leadership training market size is valued at $39.59 billion in 2025 and is projected to grow from $42.92 billion in 2026 and reach $73.67 billion by 2034

Why do organizations make such a heavy investment in something that is unlikely to move the needle? While this piece is not intended to address the organizational psychology of poor training investments, my hunch is the answer to this question lies in one of two reasons:

We have always done it this way;

There are no other options.

Regardless, leaders are not created by sending people to a training course.

But there is a better way to create a community of leaders.

The Continuous Leadership Practice Approach

It is my firm belief that people need the time and space to

It is a cycle that I call the “Continuous Leadership Practice Approach to Behavioral Change.”

I use it with my leadership coaching clients and it works.

As already mentioned, knowing what to do is not the same as doing it. However, by creating an opportunity for leaders to put their newfound leadership knowledge into practice on a regular basis throughout the week, we help them develop new behaviors.

Indeed, we help them change.

Making The Case for Continuous Leadership Practice

Here’s why the Continuous Leadership Practice Approach to Behavioral Change works:

New Knowledge Is Better Absorbed in Small Increments: A multi-day training class covers a lot of ground. As such, there’s only so much time for reflection and practice before the instructor moves on to the........

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