The Stupid Syndrome

Why Smart Leaders Fall for the Wrong Ideas

By LG Henwood
Published by Collective Ink · October 2026

The Book

The Stupid Syndrome

Why Smart Leaders Fall for the Wrong Ideas

How it connects to the Veritus Framework

The Veritus Framework provides a clear, practical discipline for improving decision quality.

The Stupid Syndrome goes further by examining:

  • how leadership dynamics distort judgement

  • why persuasive confidence often overrides evidence

  • how organisational silence enables avoidable error

  • where incentives and ego quietly shape outcomes

Through real-world scenarios, the book shows how frameworks like Veritus prevent decisions being driven by instinct alone — and how they create clarity before commitment.

The book and the framework are designed to work together:

  • Veritus provides the discipline

  • The book provides the context, patterns, and cautionary lessons

This book exists to challenge certainty before it becomes consequence.

This book exists to challenge certainty before it becomes consequence.

Who the book is for

This book is written for:

  • Board members and senior executives

  • CIOs, COOs, and transformation leaders

  • Leaders responsible for AI, digital, or strategic change

  • Anyone accountable for decisions that are difficult to reverse

It is particularly relevant where decisions involve complexity, uncertainty, or strong internal persuasion.

What makes it different

The Stupid Syndrome does not offer:

  • motivational leadership slogans

  • abstract theory

  • or retrospective blame

Instead, it focuses on:

  • recognising decision traps early

  • rebuking overconfident persuasion

  • restoring evidence, alignment, and accountability

  • making better decisions before consequences appear

The emphasis is practical, direct, and grounded in leadership reality.

Availability

The Stupid Syndrome: Why Smart Leaders Fall for the Wrong Ideas
is available for pre-order in paperback format.

Publication date: 27 October 2026
Publisher: Collective Ink

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