Here’s why we’re not ready. And what has to happen first.
Recently, I sat down for breakfast with a senior leader. I was feeling proud of the work I’ve been doing around unhiding and excited to share it.
And then they said, as calmly as they could, “I don’t want anyone on my team unhiding to me.”
I just paused.
Not because I haven’t heard hesitation before. But this felt different.
It felt like a line they had already decided not to cross.
They weren’t resisting. They were protecting something.
A structure. A way of leading that, to be fair, probably worked for them.
And at the same time, the people walking into that organization have already moved on from that model.
They’re not pushing back. They’re not trying to change it.
They’re just quietly opting out.
This isn’t coming. It’s already happening.
- 52% of Gen Z professionals are intentionally avoiding management roles.
- 67% say middle management feels high-stress and low-reward.
- And according to Harvard career consultant Gorick Ng, who interviewed hundreds of young people worldwide, less than 2% of this generation aspires to climb the corporate hierarchy at all. (Source: Fortune/ Cegos)
That doesn’t feel like a pipeline issue. Something deeper is happening.
It feels like a leadership gap we haven’t named clearly yet.
I hear people say Gen Z is difficult. Or entitled.
That’s not what I see.
What I see is a generation that’s paying attention.
They’re looking at how work has felt for the people ahead of them and asking, “Do I actually want that?”
- 42% are struggling with depression or feelings of hopelessness.
- 61% have been diagnosed with anxiety. (Sources: Walton Family Foundation and Harmony Healthcare IT)
These numbers matter. This is the generation we’re asking to show up, perform, and eventually lead.
So when they hesitate, pull back, or choose something different, it makes sense.
Here’s what that creates. A generation that needs to feel safe before they’ll show up fully. And leaders who were never taught that creating that safety was part of their role.
Neither side is wrong. They’re just speaking different languages.
And the gap between them is getting expensive, in ways we’re starting to feel but haven’t fully named.
The part we hear too late
They’re not saying it in meetings.
They’re going quiet. Disengaging. Leaving.
And then in the exit interview, we may finally hear the truth, the thing they didn’t feel safe saying while they were still there.
The leadership model that got us here
The leader I mentioned isn’t the problem. They’re leading the way they were taught.
They learned how to lead in a system that expected them to have the answers, keep people at arm’s length, stay in control.
And that worked.
It probably even got rewarded.
But when only 13% of Gen Z say they want traditional hierarchy, it starts to break down. (Source: Fortune)
And if I’m being honest, I had to learn this myself.
There were moments I didn’t want to let people in either.
The more I held on, the more alone I felt.
My team didn’t hide from me because they didn’t trust me. They hid because I hadn’t always shown them it was safe not to.
What this looks like on Monday morning
This isn’t about oversharing.
It’s about becoming a little more knowable.
Think of it as building a bridge. Not all at once. One plank at a time.
- Ask someone how they’re doing, and actually wait to hear the answer.
- Name one thing that’s genuinely hard about a current project instead of pretending it’s fine.
- Ask your team how they see a challenge before you share your solution.
- Let one decision get made without you in the room.
That’s it. That’s the first plank.
Gen Z isn’t rejecting leadership.
They’re rejecting a version of it that feels distant and hard to connect to.
The leaders who figure that out, who create a little more space, listen a little longer, let people in just a bit more, are the ones people will actually want to follow.
That’s the bridge. And it starts with unhiding.
And maybe the question worth asking yourself is:
What are you holding back that’s keeping you disconnected?
P.S. I work with leadership teams, ERG groups, and internship programs to build cultures where unhiding is possible.
Thank you for being part of the UNHIDING community.
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