Congratulations! You’ve committed to unlocking your better leader and positively impacting your stakeholder group—the organization, people, customers, and investors. You’re getting coaching, adopting new behaviours and a healthier mindset based on continual growth and optimism. Well done on committing to a clear and compelling vision of how you will drive your impact. You brainstorm with your leadership team on solving critical problems by ruthlessly applying the 80/20 rule, collaborating horizontally to develop comprehensive solutions, and developing practical execution plans where all know their roles and responsibilities based on sound governance. It’s great to see how much effort you have put into improving your communication skills to simplify complexity and reduce ambiguity about your intent and why it matters. You’re also more engaged in your community through speaking opportunities, sharing insights on panels, and keeping abreast of industry trends and competitor moves. Continuous learning is your mantra, and you read extensively to broaden your perspective.

Yet, despite doing this, you’re not getting acknowledgement from those you hoped you would and, being honest with yourself, expected you would. In a quiet moment, you ask yourself if you’re doing the right things or the effort is worth it. The answer is yes, you are, and it is. Change is hard, and personal growth is a painstaking and somewhat solitary journey. It takes resilience, grit, and a strong sense of self to stay the course, especially when you’re not getting encouragement from others. Your resilience is a testament to your strength and determination. The price of change is often loneliness. That’s because while you’re evolving, you remind others they’re not; the typical response is silence. But remember, your determination empowers you to continue this journey.

Your commitment to personal transformation and leadership development is commendable. It’s natural to seek acknowledgment from others to validate your efforts. When that recognition doesn’t come, it can lead to self-doubt. Here are five practical strategies to help you stay the course of change and personal growth in the face of little or no feedback from others.

1. Reflect on Your Progress: Regularly acknowledge the strides you’ve made—it’s about recognizing your gains over the gap to where you want to go.

2. Reorient Your Perspective: Understand that personal growth is primarily about your development, not others’ perceptions.

3. Measure Tangible Outcomes: Look at improvements in people, team performance, project success, or other quantifiable results.

4. Proactively Seek Feedback: Contact trusted mentors for constructive feedback and advice.

5. Accept the Solitary Journey: Acknowledge that personal growth can be isolating because it challenges the status quo.

Remember, your personal growth and leadership transformation are about more than you. It’s also about setting an example and inspiring others to start their growth journey. While immediate acknowledgment might be lacking, your dedication and the positive changes you bring about will eventually resonate with those around you. What if you could inspire just one person to embark on a change and growth journey? The impact could be enormous.

Let’s unlock better—together.