What the Homeless Taught Me About Leadership

Feb 20

If you think leadership is about rules, hierarchy, and policies... this episode might rattle your cage a bit.

When I sat down with Solomon Burchfield—Executive Director of New Beginnings NWA—I expected to hear about the hard work of housing the chronically homeless. What I didn’t expect was a masterclass in leadership, purpose, and trust that every business owner needs to hear.

Solomon runs a community where folks who’ve been failed by every system you can imagine learn to trust again. Not because someone tells them to. But because someone shows up for them—day after day, without judgment, without force.

And guess what? It works.

It turns out you don’t “fix” people with more rules.

You create change by showing up with consistency, clarity, and care. Whether you’re leading a nonprofit, a small business, or a Fortune 500 team, the principle holds:

Trust is earned in pennies, spent in dollars, and lost in seconds.

Here are a few lessons that stuck with me:

1. You don’t become homeless when you run out of money

You become homeless when you run out of relationships. That’ll preach—for life and business.

2. Leadership isn’t about control. It’s about cultivation

Solomon uses a gardening metaphor that I’ll be stealing. You can’t force growth. But you can tend the soil—create the conditions for people to thrive.

3. Accountability without relationship is just punishment

This one hit hard. If your team is disengaged, underperforming, or resistant, it might not be a motivation issue. It might be a trust issue.

We covered a lot in this episode—from compassionate accountability and horizontal leadership to building cultures that don't rely on micromanagement to function. And if you're a business owner who's tired of carrying all the weight, this one will show you a better way forward.

Listen and watch now to hear what one of the most radical nonprofits in Arkansas can teach us about leadership that lasts.