Power Isn't the Problem: Misaligned Intent Is

Power, in and of itself, is neither positive nor negative, its impact is defined by the intent behind its use.

Jackie is an ambitious manager. Her focus is clear: climb the corporate ladder. To achieve her goal, she aligns herself with executives and coworkers who can help her ascend, doing whatever it takes to ensure she appears as the most promotable option. To strengthen her position, she’s not afraid to play political games like throwing her colleagues under the bus, highlighting their mistakes, or quietly eroding their credibility.

How Toxic Ambition Fuels Destructive Power

When opportunities for promotions arise, Jackie strategically positions herself. She aligns with decision-makers and says what she believes they want to hear. Between these opportunities, she sows division within her team by planting seeds of doubt, turning coworkers against each other, and contributing to a competitive, distrustful environment. Every move she makes is calculated. Her loyalty lies solely with those who advance her personal agenda.

Jackie exercises relationship power by aligning with influential individuals and offering support when it serves her interests. She also uses information power to manipulate others, often through the grapevine by gathering and distributing information that compromises colleagues or pressures them into compliance. Her leadership is built on control, influence, and fear.

Managers like Jackie sometimes live in a state of anxiety, constantly looking over their shoulders for others who are equally ambitious. When someone threatens her perceived status or draws closer to power, her anxiety intensifies, pushing her to “neutralize” the competition in whatever way she can.

In such environments, power structures are built not for the good of the team, but to support individual agendas. These structures can be woven through networks, alliances, and influence and are inherently fragile. While they may empower some to bend or break rules, they can also corrode trust, suppress innovation, and fracture team cohesion.

When Culture Protects Power

When money, status, and power become dominant core values, culture shapes itself around them. Power structures solidify to protect these motivators, and even when a leader resigns, the norms they established can persist. This happens because those who are patiently waiting in line for their chances at influence continue to uphold and perpetuate centralised power.

A Different Kind of Power: Purpose-Driven Leadership

Not all managers wield power over people.

Stefan, another manager who works with Jackie, leads quite differently. Though his technical skills are modest, he’s demonstrates healthy power habits because he’s focused on building trust. He understands the strengths of his team members, invests in their development, and ensures each person feels seen and valued. He leads with compassion, transparency, and a clear sense of integrity.

Like Jackie, Stefan uses relationship power, but with a fundamentally different intention. He builds strong networks not for personal gain, but to support the collective goals of the team. His ambition is driven by purpose and vision, not status.

This contrast reveals a critical truth: when building empowered teams, purpose should carry more weight than ambition. Purpose is the deeper “why” that guides a person’s actions. Ambition is the energy behind that why. When ambition is disconnected from purpose and instead driven by self-interest, it becomes difficult to build trust, collaboration, and long-term performance.

Empowered teams are built on shared purpose, where individuals care not only about their own success, but also about the impact of their actions on others. In these teams, leaders act thoughtfully, lead with intention, and align their personal motivations with the broader vision of the organization.

Empowered Teams Require Intentional Culture

In today’s workplace, where culture, engagement, and trust are core to long-term sustainability, it’s not enough to hope that strained relationships will repair themselves. One self-serving leader can reduce morale, engagement, and performance across an entire team.

Creating empowered teams requires:

• A culture audit to identify unhealthy norms

• Leadership coaching to build self-awareness and emotional intelligence

• Active mentoring to develop relational and ethical leadership

• A clear transformation plan with measurable outcomes

• A commitment to aligning ambition with purpose

  
  

Sustainable Transformation Starts with Self-Awareness

Transformation doesn’t happen through training alone. It requires planned design, ongoing support, and leaders who are ready to examine not only what they do, but why they do it.

When leaders like Stefan rise, they foster empowered, resilient teams. These teams don’t merely show up to work, they SHOW UP as fully present, collaborative, and committed. They work not only for themselves, but for each other. It’s time to stop protecting toxic ambition and start building cultures where power is used to elevate not dominate.

About the Author: With over 40 years of global consulting, thought leadership research, and Fortune 500 experience, Yvette brings deep expertise in trust, leadership, and organizational ecosystems. She is a multiple award-winning author and creator of a unique, proven model for transforming organizations from the inside out.

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