03/19/2026
One of my favorite leadership statements is this: “For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.”
While it’s a Rudyard Kipling quote, I first heard it used in the context of leadership by Evan Fuchs—one of my Arizona mentors and a good friend. The way he framed it stuck with me, because it captures something essential about how leadership actually works. In fact, this bookmark has a permanent place on a bulletin board at my desk.
Too often, we think of leadership as a top-down dynamic, where the President or Chair is the source of strength for everyone else. But in reality, it’s far more interconnected than that. The President or Chair draws their strength from their directors—their insight, their support, their willingness to step up and lead alongside them. And in turn, those directors draw their confidence and clarity from the President’s vision, tone, and trust in them.
Each relies on the other. Neither is effective in isolation.
That idea is at the core of what I talk about in Leadership From The Front Row. Leadership isn’t about being the loudest voice or the one always at the head of the table—it’s about being part of a team that functions as a unit. It’s about backing each other up, filling in gaps, and making sure no one is carrying the full weight alone.
The strongest boards, like the strongest packs, understand this. They operate with mutual trust, shared responsibility, and a commitment to showing up for one another. Because when that happens, leadership stops being an individual effort—and becomes a collective strength.
