In Parts 1 and 2, we explored how the Human Disease manifests in leadership—through ego, control, fear, and the drive for dominance. But the Human Disease isn’t just loud. It’s also silent.
It shows up not just in the leaders who speak over others, but in those who stay quiet. Not just in those who act with certainty—but in those who constantly doubt their right to be heard.
This is where the Human Disease takes a quieter, more insidious form: Imposter Syndrome.
Imposter syndrome is the internal voice that says, “You don’t belong here.”
“You’re not ready.”
“If you speak up, you’ll be found out.”
And it thrives in cultures where leadership is performative, where vulnerability is seen as weakness, and where value is defined by certainty and status.
In these environments, people stop challenging. They stop questioning. They play it safe—not because they’re disengaged, but because they’re afraid.
Afraid of being wrong. Afraid of standing out. Afraid of being seen.
The Human Disease doesn’t just punish dissent. It creates a culture where people silence themselves before anyone else needs to.
This has a compounding effect:
– Good ideas never surface
– Problems are left unspoken
– Risk is avoided—not because it’s dangerous, but because it’s visible
And so the system continues. Not because people are bad—but because they’re scared.
Scared that they don’t have enough. Or worse, that they’re not enough.
Ironically, imposter syndrome protects the very systems that need to change. It encourages conformity over challenge, compliance over curiosity.
The Human Disease feeds on this silence. It doesn’t just require powerful voices—it also relies on the quiet ones staying quiet.
This is the overlooked reality: The Human Disease is not just out there in the organisation. It’s in us.
In our hesitation. In our self-doubt. In the belief that someone else is more qualified to speak.
That’s why the shift in leadership must start with awareness—not only of others, but of ourselves.
In Part 4, we’ll begin to explore that shift—what a different kind of leadership looks like, and how organisations can begin to create space for it.
Not just leadership that performs, but leadership that connects. Not leadership that controls—but leadership that transforms.
