Leadership Lessons from Jacinda Ardern
I had the privilege of attending the Business Chicks International Women’s Day event, where former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern shared a candid look at leadership, pressure, and what it really means to serve at the highest level.
It was a conversation about humanity, responsibility, and the quiet decisions leaders make when no one is watching.
A few messages stood out. And they apply just as much to business and leadership as they do to public office.
1. Leadership starts with self-awareness
One of the most powerful moments came when Jacinda spoke about the decision to step down as Prime Minister.
She explained that the call came down to one thing: self-awareness.
She knew the role would demand everything for the next three years. And she realised she didn’t have enough left in the tank to deliver at the standard she expected of herself.
So she made the decision to step aside.
Not because she couldn’t do the job.
But because she believed the role deserved someone who could give it everything.
That level of honesty is rare. But it’s also what strong leadership looks like.
In business, we often push through exhaustion, pressure, and expectation. But real leadership sometimes means recognising when the standard you hold for yourself can’t be met in the current moment.
And having the courage to act on that.
2. Success doesn’t always feel like celebration
Jacinda also spoke about the moment she learned she would become Prime Minister.
You might expect elation. After all, she became one of the youngest leaders in the world at the time.
But that’s not what she felt.
She felt relief.
Relief that she would now be able to help people.
Relief that policies could be implemented.
Relief that lives could change.
Relief that people on the team would keep their jobs.
The job immediately became about responsibility.
What struck her later was that she never stopped to celebrate the moment.
And that’s something she’s now working on.
Because in leadership and in business, we move quickly. One problem to the next. One milestone to the next. One deadline to the next.
We rarely stop.
Her message was simple:
Celebrate the wins. Even the small ones.
If you don’t, the work becomes a constant race with no moments of reflection along the way.
3. It’s not just what you do. It’s how you do it.
When Jacinda became leader of the Labour Party, she made a clear decision about how they would campaign.
No personal attacks.
In politics, that’s unusual. Campaigns often succeed by tearing the other side down.
But she believed leadership could be done differently.
So the campaign focused on what they stood for, not who they were against.
It was a deliberate choice about the kind of leadership she wanted to model.
Because legacy isn’t just built on what you achieve. It’s built on how you choose to achieve it.
4. Empathy is not weakness
Another theme she spoke about was empathy.
There’s a common belief that empathy and strength don’t sit together.
Her view is the opposite.
Empathy is strength.
If you can genuinely feel what your community, your team, or the people around you are experiencing, you gain perspective.
And perspective leads to action.
Her words were simple:
Empathy is action.
It’s not passive. It’s the starting point for meaningful decisions.
Self-doubt isn’t the enemy
Perhaps the most relatable moment came when she spoke about self-doubt.
Leaders often feel pressure to appear certain all the time. But Jacinda was clear that doubt is normal.
Imposter syndrome.
Second-guessing.
Wondering if you’re the right person for the job.
These feelings don’t mean you’re weak.
They only become a problem if you let them stop you from becoming the person you’re capable of being.
A small-town connection
At the end of the event, I had the chance to briefly connect with Jacinda.
What we quickly discovered was something we shared, growing up in small towns in New Zealand.
I’m from the bottom of the South Island. She grew up in the North Island.
Different places, but a similar upbringing.
There’s a certain mindset that comes from small-town life in New Zealand. You’re taught to be humble. Practical. Grounded. You get on with the job. And you support your community.
We joked about it for a moment, but there was also a quiet appreciation for those roots. Because those early lessons shape how you show up later in life.
It’s easy to assume that once someone has stood on the global stage, meeting world leaders and navigating some of the most complex moments in modern politics, they would feel distant or guarded.
But the opposite was true.
Jacinda was warm, open and completely present.
And that, perhaps, was the final reminder of the day.
Leadership isn’t about status.
It’s about how you show up for yourself and the people who matter.
