We have a chronic tendency to treat businesses like machines. When the output isn't right, we look for the broken gear. We audit the marketing funnels, tighten meeting rhythms, and tweak KPIs. We treat every struggle as a tactical error.
But after three decades at the intersection of brand strategy and leadership systems, I’ve noticed a recurring pattern:
most organizations aren't suffering from a lack of doing. They are suffering from a crisis of being.
There is a fundamental difference between the mechanics of a business and its identity. Marketing and Management are the "Doing." They are the tactics, schedules, and spreadsheets. They are the plumbing of the organization. You can buy "doing." You can outsource it. You can automate it. Brand and Leadership are the "Being." This is the internal architecture. It is the identity of the leader and the collective state of the leadership system. It is the answer to the questions: Who are we? Who are we becoming?
The trap is that it is much easier to talk about "doing" than it is to talk about "being." It is safer to argue over a logo or a project management software than it is to sit in the uncomfortable silence of a leadership team that doesn't trust itself.
Before we look at solutions, we have to look in the mirror. If your "Doing" is disconnected from your "Being," the symptoms are predictable.
You might have a "Being" problem if:
In Marketing: Creative feedback becomes personal and endless. Rounds go on forever because no one has a shared “North Star” to judge against.
In Management: Meetings are productive and KPIs are clear, but decisions don’t stick. Decisions constantly go upwards and teams escalate small calls.
In Growth: You are hitting your financial targets, but it takes constant pressure and heroics to sustain them. Growth is happening but it still feels fragile.
In Culture: You’ve defined your values, but they don’t survive pressure. In the moments that matter they become optional.
The shift from doing to being often happens when a decision forces you to choose what you stand for, even if it is difficult.
The 50-Year Legacy: A market-leading pharmacy chain at a crossroads. Before they change the sign on the door, they must decide which parts of their soul are permanent and which are just old habits. If they jump straight to the "doing," the new brand is just a mask the organization (and the market) will eventually reject.
The Structural Pivot: A global executive search firm redefined their identity not just as a set of values, but as a business philosophy. This became a filter for global expansion and partnership. It wasn't a "soft" exercise; it was a complete business model recalibration.
The Integrity Choice: A coffee business discovered a key partner had become a toxic "internal adversary." The "doing" logic said stay for the supply chain. The "being" logic - the CEO's integrity - demanded they leave. That decision cleared the way for aligned partners who opened up new avenues for their growth.
The industry loves to draw battle lines. Marketing specialists call "Brand" a luxury; Branding purists call "Marketing" noise. Management consultants preach "Systems," while Leadership coaches talk about "Vision." This tension is an illusion. They are different points on the same spectrum. Marketing without Brand is a lie. It’s "doing" without "being." Management without Leadership is a grind. It’s the mechanics of movement without the fuel of trust.
To grow, we have to bridge the "being-doing gap” by balancing the inner and outer games. You start with the core identity and the mental models (the Being), and build the systems and structures (the Doing) on top of that foundation.
When the system is connected to a clear and strong core, decisions move faster and teams operate with clarity and confidence. The result is progress that lasts, because it’s built from the inside out.
