This is a Japanese saying I come back to often.
Because it carries a powerful lesson for leaders.
What most leaders miss is this:
You don’t realize you’re on the wrong train at the beginning.
It doesn’t start wrong.
In fact, it usually starts out just fine.
- The role makes sense.
- The strategy is working.
- The path feels right.
And then, slowly, something shifts.
- Decisions start to feel heavy.
- The role feels harder than it used to.
- It takes more effort to stay energized.
You’re successful on paper. But it doesn’t feel that way.
And because we’re leaders, we do what we have been taught to do...
Push through and persevere.
Telling ourselves this is just what leadership looks like.
I’ve said it to myself.
I’ve watched leaders I coach say it too.
But sometimes the bravest leadership moment isn’t pushing through.
It’s noticing you might be on the wrong train in the first place.
And once you see the train you’re on,
Staying becomes a decision. So does getting off.
Here are three checks I ask to help leaders build that awareness:
1️⃣ Alignment check.
↳ Does the train you’re on still align with who you want to become as a leader?
2️⃣ Energy check.
↳ Does this give you energy, or drain it from you?
3️⃣ Cost check.
↳ If nothing changes and you stay another year, does the cost increase or decrease?
These questions matter because they force a pause.
They help you see where you’re headed before you’ve gone too far to turn back.
Because leadership doesn't have to be about moving faster or pushing harder.
Sometimes it’s about being honest enough to say:
“This train got me here. But it’s not taking me where I want to go next.”
That’s not quitting.
That’s leadership.
So, ask yourself, am I on the wrong train?
If the answer is yes, the next question is: what are you going to do about it?
The choice is yours.
I break down topics like this in my newsletter, The 5-Minute Leader.
Where I share one short leadership insight, delivered daily, to help you lead with more intention.