More than being seen

There is a concept in leadership that most people need to “see to be.” Before we can imagine ourselves in certain spaces, we often need to see someone else stand there first.

For me, that moment was spring 1999. I was a university commerce student in Wellington when Theresa Gattung became chief executive of Telecom. At the time, Telecom was one of the largest companies in New Zealand.

Suddenly, a woman was visible at the head of corporate New Zealand. I remember thinking, if she can do that, then perhaps I can too. The glass ceiling suddenly became the floor.

That is the power of visible leadership at its best. Not visibility for its own sake, but visibility backed by credibility. It creates a path others can imagine themselves walking.

Recently, I had the privilege of hearing Dame Theresa Gattung speak. It reminded me why visibility in leadership matters. Visible leaders show others what is possible. They make ambition feel more available. They give the next person permission to think, “Maybe I could do that too.”

We do need to be careful; visibility is not the same as credibility. That distinction matters more now than it perhaps ever has. A generation ago, many credible leaders became visible because they had first come through long pathways of service, governance, business, community contribution or formal development. Their visibility was often the public expression of work already done.

Today, visibility has never been easier to create. A social media presence, a good photograph, confidence on camera, a polished biography and the right language can all help people become known. And visibility itself is not the problem. Done well, it can connect people, share ideas, build trust and create opportunity. Visibility is easy to notice. Credibility often takes longer to understand.

Credibility is built through judgement, responsibility, humility, courage, practical wisdom and the willingness to keep learning. It is built through the things people do long before public recognition arrives.

That is why I find myself thinking about leadership pathways in agriculture, especially as funded development programmes across the sector become harder to access or begin to wind down.

Formal programmes are not the only way credibility is built. Of course they aren’t. But they have often provided something important. They have helped people invest in their own development before they were widely seen. They have created structure, challenge and confidence. They have helped people who were already capable begin to understand where that capability might take them.

Without those pathways, we risk making visibility carry too much weight in deciding who gets opportunity.

So perhaps the question is not whether visibility matters. It does.

The better question is how we make sure credibility is recognised before visibility becomes the only thing we can see, especially if formal development pathways become harder to access.

Because agriculture needs both. Credibility gives leadership depth. Visibility gives leadership reach.

The opportunity is to bring more people into that journey by backing their credibility before their visibility has fully arrived. Because “see to be” today should mean more than seeing someone’s name, face or profile. It should mean seeing the pathway, the work and the support that helped them get there, so others can find their own way forward too.

Thank you, Dame Theresa Gattung. For reminding us that ceilings do not become floors by visibility alone, but by credible leaders who make the climb feel possible for those still looking up.

LeAnne Blakelock is a Taranaki based dairy farmer and accountant, and founder of the social media platform, the Calf Chronicles.