Leadership Is a Practice, Not a Personality

Business Consultant and Podcast Host Desiree Goldey Shares Her Insights in Her First Solo Book

AUSTIN, Texas (October 10, 2026). Leadership. The word evokes images of generals leading troops into battle or CEOs building businesses and bringing products to market. Still, what is leadership? Is it that special “thing” that some people have and others don’t?

Desiree Goldey, author of Leadership Is a Practice, Not a Personality, her first solo book, says leadership is a practice that people can learn and use in their work. Goldey is the founder of Do Better Consulting, a firm that works with founders, talent leaders, and senior professionals on talent strategy, and she brings more than 25 years of business experience to the book.

“Most leadership advice sells you a personality type: charismatic, decisive, visionary. My book argues that’s the wrong starting point,” said Goldey. “The leaders who change how their teams work are doing the unglamorous internal work to develop better systems that are based on practical strategy, not platitudes.”

Leadership Is a Practice, Not a Personality gives business leaders the tools to become more self-aware, empathetic, and inclusive in six stages:

Notice: see what is actually happening with your team, including your own blind spots.
Reflect: sit with what you learned before you respond.
Empathize: treat empathy as a real-time leadership skill, not a soft skill.
Include: build inclusion into your business systems, not just your intentions.
Mentor: develop the next generation of leaders without losing yourself in the process.
Lead: lead with authority you earned, not authority you assume because of a position.

The book makes the case that leadership isn’t about who you are or what personality traits you have. It’s about what you do.

Leadership Is a Practice, Not a Personality is published by Guiding Brilliant Writers Publishing House. The ebook is available to order now on Amazon and delivers October 14, 2026, and the paperback releases October 27, 2026. To order, visit amazon.com/dp/B0HMJVRJFH. To learn more, visit notapersonalitybook.com.

About Desiree Goldey

Desiree Goldey is the founder of Do Better Consulting, a speaker, a coach, and the co-host, with Ashley King, CEO of TalentEd, of the Talentless podcast. She has spent her career challenging outdated norms in leadership and hiring, working with organizations to build cultures that are genuinely inclusive and effective, not just well-intentioned.

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) run through nearly all of her work. Goldey doesn’t treat them as separate initiatives. They are built into how she designs hiring systems and develops leaders. As a queer, Black woman, Goldey’s lived experience shapes how she approaches leadership and consulting. Based in Austin, Texas, she brings resilience, humor, and directness to the work.

Learn more at dobetterconsulting.net or follow her:

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Editor’s note: Desiree Goldey is available for media interviews, speaking engagements, and book signings. To schedule an interview or appearance, contact Ilena Di Toro at 215-776-4251 or ilena.ditoro@hotmail.com.