Power as a Loan: Leading by Planting People Power is a loan. It is never truly owned, only held for a while.

From kingdoms to companies, from congregations to communities, power has a peculiar temporality. It arrives. It lingers. And sooner or later, it departs. But what matters most is not how long one holds it — but what one invests it in during the tenure. Too many treat power as a possession to reinforce, defend, and preserve; far fewer treat it as a trust to amplify, distribute, and relinquish.

In this article, we revisit the metaphor of power as a loan, and explore how leaders who plant people—through mentoring, empowerment, and legacy-building—escape the trap of being forgotten once their titles fade. Along the way, we draw on Robert Greene’s The 48 Laws of Power, Moisés Naím’s The End of Power, and scholarship on empowering leadership.

The Nature of Power: Ephemeral, Diffusing, Eroding

To frame the predicament: Moisés Naím argues in The End of Power that power today is more fragile, more diffused, and harder to maintain than ever before. What he calls the “power paradox” is that while more actors can acquire influence, holding on to it is increasingly difficult.

Naím suggests that four tools of power—force (“muscle”), persuasion (“pitch”), incentives (“reward”), and norms (“code”)—are all under pressure from three revolutions: the More Revolution (rising affluence), the Mobility Revolution (movement of people and ideas), and the Mentality Revolution (demand for accountability) . In effect, more people are contesting the center. Those perched atop hierarchical structures face more challengers, more transparency, more exit options for subordinates, and more scrutiny.

Even institutional structures built for permanence are vulnerable: higher turnover in chief executives, frequent regime changes, organizations cannibalized by disruptive forces—all point to the expiry risk of power.

From this vantage, the metaphor of a loan becomes vivid: power is borrowed from time, context, institutions, and people. Its “interest” must be paid through legacy, not only through authority.

The 48 Laws: Lessons and Warnings
Robert Greene’s The 48 Laws of Power is often read as a manual of ruthless dominance. But many of its laws, when interpreted with ethical humility, can reveal checks and balances on how one wields authority. It also warns of pitfalls leaders fall into when they forget their impermanence.

Here are a few illustrative laws, with commentary that echo the theme of planting people:

Law 11: Learn to Keep People Dependent on You

If taken crudely, this law encourages creating dependence so no one can replace you. But inversely, a leader who refuses to cultivate autonomy is ensuring that when they leave, chaos or resentment will follow. A wiser inversion is: build people such that they don’t need you when you’re gone.

Law 5: Guard Your Reputation with Your Life

Power is often sustained by how people perceive you. But if your reputation is built on fear, not respect, your tenure will not outlast your title. A leader who uplifts others preserves not just their own image, but the goodwill and memory of the people they empowered.

Law 46: Never Appear Too Perfect
Greene warns that appearing flawless breeds envy and hidden opposition. A leader who acknowledges weakness, asks for help, admits mistakes is more relatable—and invites others into the journey. That vulnerability is fertile ground on which others can grow.

Law 47: Do Not Go Past the Mark You Aimed For; In Victory, Learn When to Stop

Greene cautions that success, if overreached, can undo itself. Ambitious leaders often fall into the trap of overreaching, squeezing every last bit of control. But true power is knowing when to step back—allowing others space to lead.

Law 48: Assume Formlessness
Rather than rigid rules or roles, Greene urges adaptability. A leader who is too fixed becomes a target or anachronism when circumstances shift. By contrast, planting people—diversifying influence, decentralizing, mentoring others—embeds adaptability into the system itself.

Taken together, these laws highlight that power maintained by suppression is brittle; power invested in people is resilient.

From Authority to Empowerment: A Shift in Conception

The shift from “authority-holder” to “people-planter” aligns with leadership scholarship about empowerment. In a classic article on empowerment as leadership, the argument is that the modern leader’s role is to delegate, mentor, trust, give space for initiative, and foster ownership among subordinates.

One emerging style is superleadership (Manz & Sims): leading others to lead themselves. This is a meta-leadership: your job is not to control everything, but to create a system where people can self-govern, contribute, and grow.

From theology and ethics, V. Kessler discusses “responsible leadership” and reminds that power without moral restraint is dangerous; leaders must view power as stewardship.

Thus, the metaphor I began with—that power is a loan—is not just rhetorical, but deeply rooted in leadership theory. The most enduring leaders are those who used the loan to seed new leaders, not to erect monuments.

Planting People: Strategies and Analogies for Growth

Let me offer a framework with metaphors to help translate the metaphor into actionable leadership practices.

1. Sow Seeds in Others Early
A plant doesn’t sprout overnight. A leader must identify raw talent, water it, give sunlight (feedback), and let it root. Resist the urge to hire only “already grown” talent—look for people with potential and invest time, training, exposure. For instance, a forest does not grow by planting mature trees only; you plant seedlings across seasons so the forest regenerates even if storms fell some.

2. Create Fertile Soil (Culture of Trust & Ownership)

In poor soil, seeds will struggle no matter how well they are planted. A leader should build an environment where people feel safe to experiment, to fail, to speak, to lead. Flatten hierarchies where possible, solicit dissenting voices, and delegate responsibility.

3. Prune as Needed
Growth sometimes needs pruning—removing what is dying, reshaping what is overgrown. That might mean giving feedback, reassigning, or letting go of sub-optimal performers. But pruning should always aim to strengthen the system, not suppress it.

4. Weave Mutual Networks
Rather than being the singular hub of influence, help people connect laterally. Encourage collaboration, cross-training, peer mentorship. Then influence survives even if the central figure departs.

For example: If power is a loan, networks are the collateral. Even when the “borrower” (leader) leaves, the network holds value.

5. Empower Successors
One way to guarantee your “loan” returns positively is to train your successors well, let them practice before fully handing over, and publicly affirm their legitimacy. Resist the temptation to overshadow them.

6. Echo Your Legacy
Institutions, practices, and values planted in people last longer than any edifice or system. Teach values, ethics, and principles. Create platforms (scholarships, training programs, fellowships, mentorship schemes) that outlive you.

Dangers of Holding Power as Possession

If one treats power as possession rather than a trust, several risks emerge:

Stagnation: Because innovation threatens control, the leader resists change. Critics are silenced; others are not trusted.

Isolation: Over time, sycophants replace real feedback, and the leader becomes disconnected from reality.

Resentment: The suppressed, undeveloped, or ignored will push back after the leader leaves—or even while still in office.

Loss of legacy: Titles fade, buildings decay, programs are dismantled—but people remember who invested in them.

Models of leadership dynamics show how when a leader’s status declines, a power vacuum emerges and the next successor often comes quickly, especially when alliances are fragile.

Thus, a leader who hoards influence ensures a brittle legacy.

Case Reflection: A Hypothetical Story
Imagine a CEO, Aza, who arrives in a struggling organization. She could have centralized all decision-making, held tight control, and become indispensable by the time she leaves. But instead she chooses a different path.

In her first months, she identifies mid-level managers with promise, pairs them with mentors, and gives them room to lead pilot projects.

She reorganizes teams to remove silos and encourages cross-functional leadership.

As productivity improves, she publicly credits her team, lets them speak at conferences, and builds a leadership training school.

At her exit, audits show a robust leadership pipeline; people talk about her in alumni meetings, projects maintain momentum, and her successor inherits a culture—not a vacuum.

In that arc, the “loan” of her power was transmuted into a forest of influence.

Integrating Greene, Naím, and Leadership Theory

Greene provides cautionary laws and tactical awareness: how power is won, how envy and overreach can undo it, how you must adapt.

Naím contextualizes power’s fragility in our modern era of diffusion: your grip is weaker, threats more distributed.

Leadership scholarship fills out the how of planting people: empowerment, delegation, moral leadership, succession planning.

When combined, they argue: the wiser use of power is not to hoard it, but to diffuse it—intentionally, ethically, and strategically.

Conclusion
Power is not an inheritance. It is a loan from the people, institutions, and time. And in that, there is a moral imperative: invest the loan wisely.

Your real mark will not be the length of your reign, but the lives changed in your wake. The people you mentored will become leaders of tomorrow; the culture you built will live beyond your tenure; the legacy of your integrity will echo longer than your title.

So while your seat still carries influence, plant people. Sign opportunities into others’ lives. Share the platform. Multiply your authority by empowering successors. Because when the spotlight shifts—and it will—the people you nurtured will become your enduring reference.

By: Hamza I. Salifu