What Tesla Teaches Us About CEO Branding
When the Brand Becomes the Risk: Lessons in Focus, Visibility, and Legacy
Let’s not sugarcoat it. When a CEO’s leadership brand eclipses the company’s, the impact can be spectacular, until it’s not.
Just ask Tesla.
The Founder Trap: Too Much Brand, Not Enough Focus
For years, Elon Musk was Tesla. His maverick reputation gave the company an edge. He drew customers, investors, and global attention without spending a cent on advertising.
But in 2024–25, that same leadership brand became a liability.
From declining profits to disillusioned customers, Tesla’s recent stumbles reveal a deeper leadership challenge: when visibility is unintentional, unfiltered, or unaligned, it doesn’t just create noise, it creates risk.
The problem isn’t being visible. It’s being visible without clarity.
And that’s a trap many senior leaders fall into—especially those juggling large teams, multiple priorities, or public-facing roles.
The Role of Strategic Visibility in Leadership
You don’t need to be Elon Musk to fall into this pattern.
Many senior leaders today face:
A growing demand to “show up” more visibly
Conflicting expectations across teams and stakeholders
A legacy brand that doesn’t match their current goals
The pressure to perform and promote simultaneously
If your personal visibility doesn’t match the evolution of your leadership, you're not just missing opportunities. You’re miscommunicating value.
Case Study: When Visibility is Misaligned
A biotech CEO I worked with in 2023 was widely respected internally, but externally, she was perceived as passive, inaccessible, and “behind the curve.” Why? Because her leadership brand hadn’t evolved since her early days as a COO.
Through our work together, we reshaped her narrative, clarified her presence in high-stakes meetings, and designed key signature stories that aligned with her 2025 vision.
Within six months:
She was invited to keynote at an industry event for the first time in 8 years.
Her board cited “increased clarity and strategic confidence.”
Two high-potential hires said they joined the company because of her.
The lesson? Brand is leverage, when it reflects who you are becoming, not just who you’ve been.
The Leadership Branding Toolkit
Here’s your toolkit to ensure your visibility reflects your true leadership value.
✅ Three Strategies
Audit Your Leadership Brand What are the 3–5 messages others consistently associate with your leadership? Do they match your next chapter?
Curate Signature Stories Great leaders don’t just present they narrate. Build 2–3 clear stories that demonstrate your values, decisions, and unique way of leading.
Control the Optics Visibility isn’t just what you say. It’s where you show up, who introduces you, how you speak in high-stakes rooms, and what your presence signals intentionally or not.
✅ Two Essential Skills
Narrative Framing: Learn to frame your updates and key moments in ways that align with your strategy not just the facts, but the why behind them.
Boardroom Presence: Develop the ability to speak with precision, pause strategically, and own the room even when you say less.
🎯 One Actionable Challenge
Write your Q2 Visibility Memo In under 200 words, articulate the version of your leadership you want stakeholders to see more of. Then ask:
Where am I already showing this?
Where am I under-communicating it?
What will I do this quarter to make it visible?
Want Help Crafting the Brand of Your Next Chapter?
This is the work I do with senior leaders: helping you sharpen your narrative, presence, and decision-making influence.
Through Leadership Brand Coaching, we refine how you show up publicly and privately so that your value speaks before you do.
🗓️ Book a Strategic Consultation Let’s assess where your leadership brand is strong, where it needs evolution, and what kind of visibility shift will get you to your next milestone.
Speak to you soon,
Shivangi Walke
