A guest blog by Adrienne Meakin – Founder, The Lote Agency
When we talk about leadership, words that often surface are vision, courage, or determination.
But in my experience, the foundation of excellent leadership is something far more subtle and even personal. It’s a leader’s willingness to look inward, get a bit vulnerable and identify their own biases that is the secret sauce to developing awesome teams.
Bias isn’t a flaw unique to a few of us, it’s part of being human – we all do it. Our brains take shortcuts, shaped by our culture, upbringing, and lived experience. Bias evolved as a survival mechanism. Our brains are wired to take shortcuts so we can process vast amounts of information quickly.
As a personal example, one of my mentors, who once ran a marketing agency, only hired women in the production team, because he believed they had better attention to detail than men. Biased, yes. Speedier recruitment, absolutely. But how often would that team have unwittingly missed an opportunity for the diversity of thought from half of the population?
So, why do our brains create bias?
Cognitive efficiency: Every second, we’re bombarded with sensory input. Biases are mental shortcuts that help us make snap judgments without burning out our brainpower. If we had to weigh every piece of information rationally, we’d never get through
breakfast!
Safety and survival: Back when we were cave people, bias helped us detect threats quickly, recognising patterns (like rustling grass might equal a predator) without needing evidence every time. Quick decisions kept us alive.
Belonging and social cohesion: We are biased toward people who seem like “us.” That in-group preference once protected tribes and built trust quickly in small groups.
So going back to the example of my mentor, this shows how his bias towards female production designers was saving him time deciding between employee candidates, seemingly ‘weeding out’ the less skilled male candidates, and creating a more cohesive team of like-minded female designers. But at what expense?
The modern catch
The problem is, in today’s workplaces, biases can shut down diversity of thought, exclude voices, and reinforce sameness. What helped our ancestors survive doesn’t necessarily help our teams thrive.
Left unexamined, those shortcuts become invisible barriers to innovation. And when leaders carry blind spots into decision making, they ripple through entire teams; who gets listened to, who gets opportunities, and ultimately, what kinds of ideas see the light of day.
That’s why I believe the first step to building excellent teams isn’t about decisiveness or toughness but awareness. Leaders who pause to ask, What assumptions am I carrying? Who do I gravitate toward? Who am I overlooking? Create the conditions for diversity of thought, innovation, and trust.
To me, this work is about curiosity. When we’re curious about our biases, we become open to new voices. We start to notice who isn’t in the room, whose perspectives are missing, and what brilliance might lie just outside our usual field of vision.
I believe the leaders who build the best teams are not those who try to erase their biases, but those who remain awake to them. They invite difference, create structures that make space for dissent, and embrace diversity.
As we gather at Deep Dive Day, my hope is that we’ll step into that awareness together. Because excellent teams start with leaders brave enough to turn inward, to see themselves clearly, and to lead with an open mind.