Leadership today isn’t suffering from a lack of strategy—it’s suffering from a lack of follow-through.
In a world where teams are stretched thin and priorities shift daily, the most powerful credibility lever a leader holds is their Say:Do ratio: the alignment between what they promise and what they deliver.
According to Harvard Business Review, 58% of employees trust strangers more than their own boss. That’s not a personality problem—it’s a performance gap.
When leaders say one thing and do another, even unintentionally, trust evaporates.
A Say:Do ratio of 1:1 means your word becomes your bond. No deferrals. No “something came up.”
When you commit, you deliver. It’s the simplest formula for building trust—and the most overlooked.
Why does it matter?
Because inconsistency at the top breeds disengagement across the business.
Gallup reports that employees who strongly trust their leadership are 42% more likely to be highly productive and 32% more likely to remain loyal to the company.
Trust isn’t a soft metric—it’s a performance multiplier.
But the damage of a poor Say:Do ratio goes beyond missed deadlines. It undermines accountability. It normalises excuse-making. And it silently tells your team that reliability is optional.
On the flip side, leaders who consistently honour their commitments model the discipline they expect from others. They create a ripple effect of reliability, accountability, and execution that elevates the entire organisation.
It’s not about perfection. It’s about integrity. When you can’t deliver, communicate early. Reset expectations. Own the gap.
The fastest way to build trust is to take responsibility—especially when things don’t go to plan.
In the noise of corporate busyness, people are no longer impressed by talk. They’re watching action.
So here’s the question: if we measured your Say:Do ratio today, would it build confidence—or raise doubt?
Leadership doesn’t need more slogans—it needs more follow-through.
Say it. Do it. That’s the leadership people remember.
