Eighteen months ago, I thought I had a pretty good handle on what leadership looked like. Turns out I was describing management.
That's the shift the Accent Leadership Academy quietly unlocked for me.
Management is about keeping the plates spinning: the plans, the processes, the performance. Leadership is about why those plates matter, and who's spinning them alongside you. A small distinction on paper. In practice, it changes almost everything.
The biggest change has been in how I listen. I ask better questions, hold the silence a bit longer, and resist the urge to jump in with answers. I've learned that people usually know what they need; my job is to create the space for them to say it, and to really hear it when they do. Giving clarity and trust beats giving instructions every time, and the best conversations are often the ones where I say the least.
It's also been humbling. Leadership exposes you in ways management never really does: your habits, your defaults, your blind spots. The programme gave me the language, the frameworks and the peer group to do something about it.
What I'm taking forward is simpler than I expected: lead with intent, build trust deliberately, and create the conditions for others to do their best work. Everything else follows.
It's been a brilliant journey over the last 18 months and I feel much better equipped as a result. Thank you to Ange from the Accent People and Culture team for your energy, expertise and generosity in leading us through it, and to this first cohort for making it genuinely enjoyable along the way.
Stephen Love is the Customer Insight Manager at Accent
This blog forms part of the Accent at 60 campaign - celebrating 60 years of Accent proving safe, secure homes for those who need them most.