When I was in college, I couldn’t close the front door to my dorm room. The wooden door swelled in the August heat. Multiple maintenance requests were made, and yet, weeks later, the problem remained unresolved.

I went door to door to every room and found out how long people were waiting to have their urgent maintenance requests resolved. As it turns out, there was a process problem. I bypassed the usual channels and went with my list straight to the head of campus residences. After all, the process clearly wasn’t working for anyone.

You might be wondering, what does this have to do with the C-suite? The truth is, this experience mirrors what is happening in nearly every organization. Those at the top are often not aware of what’s going on below. It’s not that they don’t care. They just have people who shield them from the truth.

You see, the higher a leader rises, the less likely they are to hear honest feedback or unfiltered reality. That’s because asking the right questions and staying grounded in what’s happening is a skill in itself. When leaders don’t do it, it costs the organization. A leader might be making poor decisions due to inaccurate or incomplete data. Incomplete truths can lead to low psychological safety and trust, which we know can lead to disastrous outcomes. The leader might be missing out on cultural blind spots that lead to ethical or reputational failures. An organization that doesn’t allow dissent will see a stall in innovation, which can lead to extinction.

As a social scientist who coaches, speaks on, and writes about success and high achievers, including in my recent book, I’ve helped many leaders learn how to increase their awareness and navigate what is happening on the front lines.

There are several reasons why people guard senior leaders from the truth. Most aren’t malicious, but are based on self-preservation. Here are some of the most common reasons and ideas on how to act when you suspect this might be brewing:

1) Fear of consequences

Employees self-censor to avoid appearing negative. “Don’t shoot the messenger” of bad news is a valid concern. Employees feel that if they share bad news, they risk being sidelined or worse, fired.

At Ford, when Alan Mulally took over as CEO, he asked his leadership team to color-code project updates. Week after week, they were all green, until one brave executive finally submitted a red status, indicating things weren’t going well, and that he needed help. Instead of punishing him, Mulally applauded him and made him a shining example for the entire company. Mulally’s red-yellow-green system made honesty a leadership requirement, not a risk.

As a leader, you need to show your employees that you value and prioritize hearing the truth. Reward those who surface problems rather than those who maintain appearances. Make it clear that you can’t help or redirect resources if you don’t know the problem (and its extent).

Now, there is a systematic way to do this so that you don’t sound like a whiner. The presenter should share the goal, the current status, and what they’ve tried so far. This shows that the presenter has done everything in their power and is looking for alternative solutions or ideas they might not have considered.

Encourage upward feedback through surveys, town halls, or anonymous portals. Have regular communication where you say phrases like  I hear there is a major problem with X. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. Here is our corrective course of action. This shows that your request to hear concerns, as painful as they may be, isn’t performative. You want to be able to do something to remedy the situation, but first, you must know it exists.

2) Desire to please

Everyone wants to be in the good graces of leadership. People often think that telling them what they want to hear will do just that. They end up sugarcoating updates to match what they think the leader wants to hear. They talk about their accomplishments and improvements while avoiding the areas of concern.

3) Organizational distance

Multiple layers insulate leaders from day-to-day reality. When they’re confined to their offices and circles of influence, they don’t often know what’s happening on the front lines. Organizational etiquette means that people often report to their direct manager, not the head of the organization (although Gen Z seems to be breaking this mold).

If people don’t see you and know you, they can’t approach you. Jared Lamb, a school principal, turned his office into a conference room and repurposed an AV cart as his desk, which allowed him to roll through the school and be around the students and teachers throughout the workday. This way, he was able to see everyone in action, and offer a helping hand exactly in the moment where they needed him, whether it was a teacher needing a bathroom break or helping with a child who needed extra attention.

No, going fully mobile may not be conducive for everyone. You can, however, make the time to lead while walking around. Asking pivotal questions such as What are you working on? What’s your most pressing deadline? Where are you getting resistance? Did you find a solution to that problem you were facing? What have you tried? Where do you need help? This will actively and authentically show that you care. You’ll also be on the front lines, so you can see when people are celebrating or supporting a colleague, which is something that leaders should be aware of.

4) Time scarcity

As leaders become busier (and have fuller calendars), they rely on filtered summaries and dashboards. The problem is that those give glossed-over versions of reality.

The critical question to ask here is Why? Why did that happen this way? Why didn’t it happen before? Why is it taking so long? Instead of only having updates at meetings, use the time to understand the why behind the dashboard results.

The most effective leaders aren’t just visionaries. They’re truth-seekers. Surround yourself with those you can trust to tell you the truth and mentors who can help you seek it. Include people outside the chain of command and organization for diverse, candid input. You can’t lead well if you don’t know what’s real. Remember, staying grounded isn’t a passive state. It’s a form of discipline that you need to practice.