Authentic Leadership: What It Really Takes (and Costs) with Jacob Little

“Authentic leadership” gets thrown around a lot.

But when it’s inconvenient? When it risks power or when it costs you comfort? Do you still choose it?

In this episode Amy and Erin sit down with Jacob Little, a leader who has shaped careers, built psychological safety at scale, and led with conviction even when it wasn’t the easy path.

This isn’t a conversation about being likable.

It’s about congruence between who you are and how you decide, the difference between vulnerability and leading vulnerably, the real risk of showing up fully. Especially in senior roles. Why authenticity requires discipline, not just openness, and how AI is increasing the premium on distinctly human leadership.

We unpack the hard edges: when authenticity feels risky, the tension between transparency and oversharing, the pressure to “play the role,” what high performers must unlearn when they step into leadership, and why values don’t earn you credit, they hold you accountable.

Honest. Reflective. Practical. No leadership theater. Just the real work.