Reset. Reroot. Rise. Walking the High Road When the Path Feels Lonely

There are seasons in every leader’s life when progress feels like pushing uphill through fog. Where effort echoes into silence, and your presence — however consistent or sincere — seems to fade into the background. I recently found myself in such a space. The work was still meaningful, but the structures around it became tightening frames. The applause stopped. The path ahead dimmed.

Late one evening, I found myself journaling in near darkness — heart stirred, but not shaken. I knew I hadn’t lost my sense of calling. What I was losing was clarity about how to continue within systems that resist vision, or worse, co-opt it without credit.

That’s when John C. Maxwell’s latest book, High Road Leadership, found me — not as a prescription, but as a quiet mirror.

Two Roads Diverged…

In moments of disappointment or disillusionment, we all arrive at a fork in the road. One path is easy to slide into:

🔹 Retrench in resentment — replay conversations, hold grudges, and let disillusionment harden into bitterness.

🔹 The other is quieter but harder: Rebuild with resolve — reflect, recalibrate, and return to purpose, even without applause.

I chose the second. And not because I felt noble. But because I’ve seen what the first path does to leaders I’ve admired — and I didn’t want that for myself.

As I journaled, read, and walked through that season, a framework began taking shape — not for managing others, but for managing myself. I now call it my High Road Strategy Spectrum.

The High Road Is Rare — But It Is Real

John Maxwell defines leadership roads in three categories:

• Low Road: Treats others worse than they treat you.

• Middle Road: Treats others the same.

• High Road: Treats others better than they treat you.

Many live on the middle road — measured, transactional, tolerating just enough to stay professional. But the high road? That’s where the legacy lives. That’s where you rise not to be seen, but to see others. To hold the door open for those behind you. To choose grace when grievance would be easier.

It’s not about moral superiority. As Maxwell reminds us, it’s about valuing people, doing the right things for the right reasons, and giving more than you take.

A Strategy Spectrum: Leading Without Applause

The High Road Strategy Spectrum is not a toolkit. It’s a mindset — forged in reflection, tested in resistance.

It asks:

• Can I anchor my tone even when I lack the title?

• Will I protect my values even when they’re inconvenient?

• Can I lead with joy in quiet, unglamorous spaces?

It reminds me that leadership is not a spotlight I earn — it’s a lamp I carry.

This spectrum helps me show up with integrity even when structure stifles, to steward classrooms with love, to mentor even when it’s unseen, and to write as if my words will someday find someone in their own fog.

Stewardship Over Status

For me, leadership has become less about vision casting and more about presence keeping. It’s not the grand pronouncements but the quiet consistency. Not the clever strategy, but the soulful stability.

And in this season, I’ve found that my greatest strength lies not in how well I argue my case, but in how deeply I embody my calling.

Leadership isn’t always about the title you hold. It’s often about the tone you set.

I set my tone now with grace, quiet resolve, and faithful stewardship — for every student I mentor, every educator I uplift, and every conversation I enter with heart.

An Invitation to Walk the High Road

This is not a victory lap. It’s a check-in from the journey.

I’m preparing to co-facilitate a High Road Leadership Mastermind — not from a place of perfection, but from the practice of walking this road. If you’ve been navigating quiet resistance, unspoken fatigue, or simply need to reset — I’d be honored to journey with you.

Want to explore the High Road Strategy Spectrum?Curious about a Mastermind?DM me or reach out via email to ceo@johnsonodakkal.com 

Let’s rise — not to outshine, but to outserve.

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