Part 1: From Peer to Leader – Lessons from the Global Leadership Summit 2025
Written by: Michael Huff
It’s been almost five years since I last attended the Global Leadership Summit. This time, I’m not a church elder, a supervisor, or a manager. Now, I’m a writer and a leadership training facilitator. I decided to approach this year’s summit with the mission to answer one question.
“What’s the best way to lead a team made up of your former peers?”
Why not lean on the knowledge of leadership experts and accomplished authors such as John Maxwell, Jon Acuff, and Craig Groeschel? Or CEO and team performance expert, Juliet Funt, or CEO Thasunda Brown Duckett, who is also on one of Time Magazine’s Most Influential People in the World. Did I mention Nick Saban? Yes, I’m name-dropping!
What I didn’t expect was to get answers to this question from an award-winning choreographer or a country singer & songwriter most people know as “the Applebee’s guy.” It just goes to show you, when you know what your mission is, even the most unexpected voices can speak into it.
If you’re stepping into a leadership role or want to get better at the one you’re in, this is for you. Because, as Craig Groeschel says, “Everyone wins when the leader gets better.”
Asking the Question Shows the Leader Cares
One of our Frontline Leadership Training participants asked the question, not because she was reluctant to lead, but because she cared enough about doing it well. “What’s the best way to lead a team made up of your former peers?” It was such a good question that we added it to our “parking lot,” where we park important topics for later review. We do this so we can keep the session on track and still make it to dinner on time.
Even as we moved on, I knew this one couldn’t just stay parked. It deserved thoughtful consideration and practical answers that leaders could put into action. There are so many layers to stepping into leadership roles from within a team that this subject could fill an entire book. These are situations and challenges that can test your courage, commitment, and let’s be honest, sometimes your sanity.
Step Into the Circle
Leading former peers starts with showing up. Bradley Rapier, founder of Groove Theory and award-winning choreographer, calls this “stepping into the circle.” The circle is where you stop hiding and start showing up. It’s where you’re willing to be seen, to offer yourself, and to lead without trying to prove you belong.
I remembered the circle well, especially from my days as one of the founding members of the breakdancing crew, The Twin Lakes Breakers (TLB). TLB didn’t last long, mostly because neither of us could actually pull off a breakdancing move, but thankfully, the ’80s were chock-full of breakdancing movies that introduced me to the concept of “the circle.”
“At some point, as leaders, you have to choose to step in and engage. Models and manuals can only take us so far,” Rapier said. In leadership, that means you don’t just lean on the people who already support you. You step in and engage the entire team: friends, skeptics, and everyone in between.
Whether at a wedding, on the street, or in a leadership role, the circle is a place of courage. And as Rapier says, “You cannot hide in the circle.”
- Be visible, present, and vulnerable: Don’t just go through motions, but truly connect with the people around you. Acknowledge what is working well, but also step into the tension of what needs to happen for the team to succeed.
- Create inclusive spaces: Build environments that welcome diverse perspectives and talents. You can’t just lean on those in your corner; you need to get the whole team on board. Not everyone may agree with your decisions, but give them a chance to be heard and valued.
- Remove judgment and bias: Rapier shared a story about removing someone from the team. “I made that decision based on fear, not trust,” he said.” What looks like a liability on the surface can transform into the very thing the team needs the most when you have the courage to trust. “Everything that had been limiting became a strength.” Approach interactions with curiosity and openness, seeing others as collaborators, not competitors.
Stepping in means not writing people off, but engaging fully so hidden strengths can surface. When you’re leading former peers, it’s tempting to lean on what you already “know” about them, who was strong, who struggled, who you think might slow the team down.
Your new role presents an opportunity to be different, to be someone who sees something in them that others don’t. If Rapier challenges us to show up boldly, Craig reminds us how to show up compassionately.
Be Like Craig
Have you ever had someone make you feel like you’re the most important person in the room? That’s Craig. Walker Hayes, AKA “The Applebee’s Guy,” delivered an unexpectedly heartwarming testimony about Craig.
When Walker met Craig, he didn’t want to be there. Walker had been kicked around; he was failing more than he was succeeding professionally and personally. He had his walls up. Craig made him feel welcome and valued, and it felt real when Craig told him, “I’m glad you’re here.”
Craig kept showing up, even when Walker pushed him away. “It was weird. I didn’t love it, and I wasn’t excited,” Walker shared. “With all my baggage, my anger, and isolation. I’m so good at pushing people away, then blaming them.” It just didn’t make sense that someone could care so much.
If you ever had an employee who didn’t want to be there, didn’t trust leadership, or wouldn’t buy into the vision, you know how frustrating that can be. Employees often hold on to wounds from previous leadership. When you step in, it’s like the lyric in The Who song, “Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss.” This is where leadership gets gritty.
Over time, Craig’s care and consistency disarmed Walker. He kept showing up when it wasn’t easy and without ulterior motives. But that’s the point. Leaders build trust when care feels so genuine that it’s almost unsettling. Walker added with striking honesty, “I would only hope that someone would get in their car and say, ‘It makes me angry how much that guy cares because I can’t figure it out’.”
Winning over the disenchanted isn’t about pep talks or slogans. It’s about sitting across from someone who doesn’t trust you yet and showing up anyway. Listening. Following through. Caring when it would be easier to write them off. That’s what builds the kind of trust people will run through walls for.
Stepping In and Stepping Up
In part one of going from peer to leader, we’ve explored what it means to step into leadership when the people around you used to be peers. Bradley Rapier’s “circle” reminds us that leadership begins with showing up, being visible, vulnerable, and willing to engage the entire team, not just those who already support you. And Craig’s example reminds us that you earn trust through care and consistency, especially with those who may be disenchanted or guarded.
Be sure to follow Double E on LinkedIn so you don’t miss Part 2. We’ll lean on insights from leaders like Nick Saban and Craig Groeschel to unpack the concrete actions and daily disciplines that help you not only survive this transition but thrive in it.
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This piece is part of a growing collection of leadership insights from Double E.
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