Unlocking Leadership Potential: The Balance of Formal and Informal Development Strategies

This morning, over eggs and coffee at a weekly coaching breakfast, a familiar truth rose to the surface of conversation—one that every leader should consider deeply:

Leadership development doesn’t just happen in formal settings. It thrives in the informal ones.

Today’s topic centered around recognizing and calibrating opportunities to develop others—specifically how intentional leaders can engage both structured (formal) and spontaneous (informal) moments to grow new or emerging leaders.

[["Leaders develop daily, not in a day." - John Maxwel ]]

Here’s the reality: the ultimate responsibility for leadership development doesn’t belong to a curriculum or a calendar. It belongs to the liberating leader—the kind of leader who doesn’t just give people a job but equips them to rise into their calling.

If I’m serious about developing others, I must actively look for opportunities for instant application. That means I’m not just teaching content; I’m positioning others to practice it. Sometimes that happens in a meeting room. Other times, it happens in a hallway or over lunch—or in a conversation neither of us expected.

For example, let’s say someone just learned a new leadership principle during a team session. Later that same day, a real-life moment pops up—a challenging conversation, a new assignment, or a chance to coach a peer. As a leader, I can nudge them: “Hey, this is the perfect time to apply what we just talked about. Step into it.”

It’s formal training meeting informal opportunity.

It’s real-time development.

And it only happens if the leader is paying attention—alert and ready to create space, give permission, or offer a gentle push.

So here’s the challenge:

• Are you creating structured spaces for development?

• Are you staying alert to spontaneous, informal opportunities to reinforce them?

• And most importantly, are you willing to nudge?

Because leadership isn’t just taught in classrooms. It’s caught in the everyday moments—if we’re paying attention.