Anton Guinea
Entrepreneur, Speaker, bestselling author, and founder of The Guinea Group of Companies. For over 15 years, Anton has helped leaders move their teams to become psychologically safe, physically safe and overall better versions of themselves.
Have you ever felt like asking for help made you look weak as a leader?
I used to think the same way. For years, I believed that strong leaders should have all the answers. That they should push through, shoulder the load, and lead from the front without blinking. But I’ve learned the hard way that this mindset isn’t just unsustainable-it’s dangerous.
In fact, I reckon one of the boldest moves a leader can make is to say, “I need help.”
Leadership is not a solo journey
Somewhere along the line, we started glorifying the idea of the self-made leader. The kind of person who rises through the ranks without breaking, asking, or pausing. But let me be real with you: no one gets to the top alone. And those who try usually burn out long before they get there.
The truth? Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of wisdom.
I’ve seen leaders fall apart under pressure because they thought they had to do it all. I’ve also seen teams thrive when a leader simply admitted they were struggling and needed input. You gain trust when you show vulnerability. You earn respect when you ask your team to bring their skills and insights to the table.
If you’re still pretending to hold it all together, consider this a nudge. It’s okay to not be okay. It’s okay to ask.
Why great leaders ask for support
I remember reading a comment online that stuck with me: “The strongest leaders I’ve worked with never made me feel like they were above me. They made me feel like we were on the same side of the problem.” That nailed it.
It reminded me of something I talk about often in my coaching sessions-that the greatest leaders don’t bark orders from the top. They lean in. They listen. They say, “What do you think?” and “Can you help me with this?”
There’s a fantastic breakdown of how emotional honesty leads to team trust in this piece on leadership vulnerability. It lines up with what I see inside organisations across Australia. People aren’t looking for perfect leaders-they’re looking for real ones.
If you’re trying to build a culture where people speak up, contribute, and care, then it has to start with you. If you want your team to come to you with ideas or concerns, they need to know you ask for help too.
The courage to ask for help builds psychological safety
We run a training experience called speak safe, where leaders learn how to create legally compliant and emotionally intelligent workplaces. And one thing always stands out: the leaders who model vulnerability first are the ones whose teams flourish fastest.
Why? Because safety isn’t just about avoiding risk or ticking a compliance box. It’s about creating a culture where people feel like they belong. Like they won’t be judged for saying, “I don’t know,” or “I need help.”
In one of our recent workshops, a supervisor told me that after he admitted he was feeling overwhelmed, two other team members came forward with the same thing. They figured out a way to restructure their workload. The stress dropped. Morale lifted. It changed the whole tone of their team. That’s psychological safety in action.
Here’s a deeper look at psychological safety in teams that I believe every leader should read.
And if you want to know how to foster that within your own teams, we also provide leadership coaching and facilitation to help you do just that.
Asking unlocks collaboration
There’s a big difference between leading and controlling. If you want to be the kind of leader who builds capability, trust, and shared accountability-then you have to let others in.
One of the best ways to do that? Ask questions. Ask for ideas. Ask people to challenge your thinking.
We talk about this in our article on collaborative leadership strategies. And it’s something I encourage all leaders to take seriously.
When you stop trying to be the smartest person in the room, and start being the most curious, everything shifts. People show up differently. They lean in. They care more.
Asking invites others in. It says, “You matter. Your input matters.”
We’ve been conditioned to fear looking weak
Let’s be honest, this isn’t just a workplace thing. Culturally, especially in Australia, there’s this idea that real leaders are stoic. Strong. Silent.
But silence doesn’t build connection. It builds distance.
I know this from my own experience as someone who went through a near-fatal workplace explosion. That moment shaped my perspective forever. I knew I couldn’t get through the recovery alone. And I sure as hell knew I couldn’t keep leading like I was invincible.
That incident is why I started the guinea group in the first place. To show leaders that asking for help is strength. To prove that vulnerability builds performance. To remind people that you can lead without the mask.
If you want a high-performing team, go first
Leaders go first. That means showing people it’s safe to speak. That it’s okay to get it wrong. That we don’t need to wear the armour every day.
This is something I reinforce in our article on emotional intelligence. And you can see it echoed in this guide to high-performing cultures.
As leaders, we don’t have to know everything. But we do have to own everything. That means owning our limits. Owning our fears. Owning our need for support.
And if you’re stuck in the mindset that you need to do it all yourself, please reach out. We offer one-on-one coaching, group facilitation, and keynote presentations that tackle this head-on.
Closing thoughts
You don’t have to do it alone.
I’ve coached hundreds of leaders and worked with teams across every sector you can think of. And here’s the pattern I’ve seen: The leaders who ask for help build the strongest teams. They last longer. They go further. They build cultures that work.
So let me ask you this:
What would change for you, your team, and your organisation if you simply started saying, “I can’t do this alone”?
Let’s talk about how you can bring this courage into your workplace. Get in touch with me here.
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If you would like to learn more about Anton or The Guinea Group, please click here to book into Anton’s calendar, to:
UPGRADE your Mindset
UPSKILL your Leadership
UPLIFT your Teams