05/23/2025

Why the Best Leaders Embrace ‘Strategic Disappointment’

Effective leaders learn to navigate it intentionally

When Apple removed the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 in 2016, the backlash was immediate and fierce. Tech reviewers called it "user-hostile and stupid." Customers created petitions. Competitors ran ads mocking the decision. Yet, today, wireless earbuds are ubiquitous, and the decision looks prescient rather than foolish.

What Apple understood—and what most future-ready leaders eventually learn—is that meaningful innovation requires disappointing people strategically.

This isn’t the leadership advice you typically hear. We’re told to inspire, to build consensus, to bring everyone along. But an uncomfortable truth lurks beneath these platitudes: as your impact grows, so does your capacity to disappoint others. And rather than avoiding this reality, the most effective leaders learn to navigate it intentionally.

Please select this link to read the complete article from Fast Company.