Imagine you are a Formula 1 driver in second place with only a few laps remaining. Your team tells you to let your teammate pass while a competitor is close behind, ready to take your podium place. What would you do?
Now add this: your teammate is leading the championship and you are third, just a few points behind that competitor.
That was George Russell at last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix. Mercedes asked him to let his teammate through. Russell obeyed, dropped to third, and held off a fast-closing Lewis Hamilton by less than a second.
Why would such a competitive athlete do that?
Because Mercedes had learned from a damaging teammate rivalry and had since made the priority clear. The team comes first. Russell had questions, but he complied.
In contrast, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was in fourth. Hamilton caught him on fresher tires and had the pace to challenge for the podium. Ferrari waited too long to decide, and Leclerc held his ground. Hamilton got stuck behind his teammate for several laps and missed the podium by fractions of a second.
It’s not just that Leclerc should have obeyed. Leadership shares the blame too. They need to set clear expectations before pressure comes. But when someone talented or influential resists, leaders must decide what they’ll allow. And that choice teaches everyone what the organization truly values.
That makes me think of Red Bull Racing.
Red Bull is built around Max Verstappen, a four-time World Champion. In 2022, Verstappen refused to give a position back to teammate Sergio Pérez, though it would have helped Pérez’s championship fight. Red Bull later admitted it had not discussed what to do in that situation.
Pérez later described his final months there as toxic. A team built around one star may look successful, but it cannot reach its full potential if only one person is allowed to thrive. Formula 1’s Constructors’ Championship is won by both drivers’ combined results, not one driver’s brilliance.
Scripture gives a different model. In Philippians 2:3-8, Paul calls us to put others’ interests ahead of our own and then points to Jesus. Though He had the highest authority, Jesus humbled Himself, obeyed and served the Father, even unto death.
Talent isn’t a pass to play by different rules. When stars are above the rules, the organization no longer leads them. It serves them.
The goal isn’t to make gifted people less gifted or less competitive. It’s to ensure everyone uses their skills for the good of the entire organization. Ephesians 4:16 says, “He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.”
So, ask yourself:
- Do the rules bend for anyone based on who they are or what they’ve done? Ask a trusted colleague to tell you the truth.
- Have you agreed, in advance, on how to handle conflict and competing priorities?
- Do you hold even your best performers accountable? Repeated bad conduct shouldn’t turn into a free pass.
- Are you building a team where everyone can grow and contribute, or one dependent on a few stars?
Culture isn’t what leaders say it is. It’s what people learn they can get away with. What leaders tolerate becomes the standard.
p.s. If you don’t have a room where someone will tell you the truth about your blind spots, that’s what Kingdom Factor Cohorts is: a small group of Christian CEOs, founders, and executives who challenge and encourage one another to lead in ways that honor God. Click here to learn more.