In "Having fun is the new moat" Justin Welsh notes that: "Intense passion was a nice-to-have, or faked through a well-orchestrated "founder story." But AI has flipped all that on its head...Discipline and competence are getting easy to replace."

I think that what cannot (yet!) be replaced is L.E.A.D.E.R.S.H.I.P. The P stands for Patience.

"Patience is the third attribute Rudyard Kipling described in the poem 'If'" writes Doug Moran in 'Leading with Patience - the will to wait'. He then goes on to include an excerpt from the Kipling poem:

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,

"Patience in Leadership" in leadershipstorybank.com was published on October 31st, 2023, on Halloween. One can be forgiven for running away in horror at the thought of patience in leadership. As Doug Moran writes: "Most of us think of patience as a constitute of time, but Kipling was addressing the broader definition - enduring difficulty and hardship while awaiting the appropriate opportunity to act...to bear the nagging and sniping that often accompanies a decision to wait."

That "nagging and sniping" is the stuff of horror, especially since, as Moran notes, "Society expects those in charge to take action quickly and decisively." Any lack of action may cause people to "criticize and condemn a leader's perceived inaction or lack of speed...The greater the crisis, the greater the impatience." Moran makes sure to point out that patience is not about poo-pooing "the interim milestones or short-term deliverables." 

"Patience in Leadership", published in 2023, gives us examples of leaders who demonstrated patience, including Angela Ahrendts, Senior Vice President at Apple and Paul Polman, former CEO of Unilever "who demonstrated patience in gradually shifting the company's focus towards sustainable business practices, understanding that meaningful change takes time." In the list of things leaders can do to cultivate patience, the author includes: "show patience and respect to fellow team members to build mutual respect and a positive team culture."

A leadership article by Jerry Colonna, co-founder and CEO of Reboot, was published on Inc.com on October 25th, 2025, a few days before Halloween. In it, Colonna gives shape to the 'nagging and sniping' that Moran mentioned in his article, and also offers a way to deal with it: "But what about the anxious feeling? The one that keeps you up at night and begs you to take back the reins? Let it thrive. That feeling will not dissipate. It will not settle, sleep or let you feel anything other than the power it holds. That's because patience isn't passive. It's robust, anxious, and all the things that will cause you to second-guess yourself." In his book, Reboot, he writes about "staying with your discomfort until you reach that place where it becomes something else." He ends his article by writing that the more we practice patience "and the art of sitting with unease, the more insight you will gain."

Art?

"The Art of Patience in Effective Leadership" by Marcus Chen was published on the same day as Jerry Colonna's article. Chen ends his article by reminding us that "true leadership is not about rushing to the finish line but rather about nurturing growth, fostering collaboration, and embracing the journey along the way."

I am embracing the Afrogoth journey.

Maya Singer, in her 2020 article published on vogue.com mentions Naomi Klein, author of the 2000 book 'No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies' who asks: "What happens when an issue become passé? Inevitably, that's what happens, because what fashion wants is novelty - and what movements need is time."

Afrogoth is an A.I-native fashion movement. Yes, it is taking time to build this movement. However, just like the bamboo tree, where seemingly nothing much happens for the first five years, I believe Afrogoth will grow to be...big? Big is a nice-to-have. Impactful? Yes, impactful is a must-have!

Steve Pohlit, in "The Bamboo Tree: Life Lessons in Persistence, Patience, and Results" explains: "For five years, the seed is carefully cultivated, watered, and nourished, yet nothing seems to happen. But in the fifth year, something extraordinary occurs—the tree breaks through the soil and grows up to 90 feet in just five weeks."

Afrogoth is for curious, playful, global citizens who love the stories and histories that clothes tell. Maya Singer notes that "One way to ensure that you can 'tell the story' of your wardrobe, as Firth puts it, is to know who is making your clothes."

Big is a nice-to-have but of course it comes with its own challenges. Maya Singer continues: "A designer running an independent brand of modest size retains much more direct oversight over her operations than heads of mass-producing firms with innumerable subsidies and stockholders fixated on returns. She is able, as Rachel Comey proves, to align her business with her values."

Values. There is a certain word that I think captures the concept of 'curious and playful':

Fun.

To quote Justin Welsh: "fun is a moat AI cannot cross."

Have a fun day!