Why Most Leaders Aren't as Credible as They Think — And What to Do About It | Mitchell Levy

Why Most Leaders Aren't as Credible as They Think — And What to Do About It | Mitchell Levy

From Business Roundtable by David W. Carr

May 8, 2026 · 46 min · Episode 134

About this episode

Mitchell Levy discusses the importance of credibility in leadership and how leaders can improve their trustworthiness, visibility, and likability.

Most leaders believe they are credible. Most have never actually tested that assumption — and the gap between how they see themselves and how others experience them is costing them trust, influence, and opportunity. Mitchell Levy has spent decades in Silicon Valley coaching executives, writing 65 books, founding 20 companies, and interviewing hundreds of thought leaders to answer one deceptively simple question: what does it actually mean to be credible? What he found is that credibility is not just about being trusted. It is about being trusted, known, and liked — and most leaders are quietly failing on at least one of those three dimensions without knowing it. In this episode, David Carr and Mitchell break down the Executive Abundance framework, the Clarity Formula, and why the first step to becoming a more credible leader has nothing to do with your marketing and everything to do with how you show up before the camera turns on. In this episode: Why credibility is defined as being trusted, known, and liked and what most leaders get wrong about all three The Clarity Formula: how to articulate where you are executing on your purpose in ten words or less Why 90 percent of people…

People in this episode

Host: David W. Carr

Guest: Mitchell Levy

Topics covered

  • credibility
  • leadership
  • trust
  • Executive Abundance
  • Clarity Formula
  • purpose
  • AI and empathy

Keywords

  • credibility
  • leadership
  • trust
  • Executive Abundance
  • Clarity Formula
  • purpose
  • AI
  • human empathy

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