Escape the Drama Triangle and Lead
The Invisible Trap Sabotaging Your Team’s Execution
Most teams are stuck. Not because they lack resources, capability, or intention, but because they are operating inside an invisible trap called the Drama Triangle. They don’t even know it. They are just trying to get through the day. But this trap creates a pattern of behavior that sabotages execution and drains momentum.
Before you get mad at me for calling you on the drama, I didn’t create the Triangle. I’m just naming the pattern. The Drama Triangle was created by psychiatrist Stephen Karpman in 1968, and it’s been widely respected for over 50 years by therapists, executive coaches, and leadership experts. Why? Because it exposes, often uncomfortably, the unconscious roles people slip into when stress hits: Victim, Persecutor, and Rescuer. It’s the go-to framework for diagnosing the invisible dynamics that sabotage execution, stall progress, and quietly kill momentum on even the most capable teams.
The Drama Triangle is made up of three reactive roles: Victim, Persecutor, and Rescuer. These roles feel familiar. They feel justified. But they kill accountability, clarity, and follow-through. They are the reason good teams get stuck and stay stuck.
The Victim Role
Victims believe they have no control. They see themselves as the casualty of bad circumstances, poor leadership, or difficult customers. They focus on what they cannot do instead of what they can. Victim leadership creates teams that wait for permission instead of taking action.
Victim thinking sounds like this:
“We do not have enough people.”
“We cannot meet deadlines because priorities keep shifting.”
“Leadership is not supporting us.”
“The customer keeps changing their requirements.”
This mindset isn’t just passive, it’s dangerous. It creates a culture where no one owns the outcome, and nothing moves forward without a fight.
The Persecutor Role
Persecutors push with pressure. They believe the only way to drive results is through control, criticism, and blame. They confuse accountability with punishment. Their teams walk on eggshells. Fear becomes the operating system.
Persecutor leadership creates compliance without engagement. The team does the bare minimum to avoid conflict. Creativity dies. Initiative disappears. Results suffer, and nobody is surfacing breakdowns. Cuz they kill the messenger!
The Rescuer Role
Rescuers look like heroes. They jump in to fix problems. They carry all the weight. They solve everything for everyone. On the surface, it looks like leadership. But it is not.
“Rescuers create dependency. Every time they save the day, they prevent someone else from growing. They build teams that cannot execute without constant direction. Over time, they become the bottleneck. They burn out and take the whole team down with them.”
The Cost of Drama
The Drama Triangle is expensive. It fuels anxiety, erodes trust, and leads to inconsistent performance. Teams are burnout-busy but not effective. Progress is temporary. Wins are accidental. The organization runs hard but stalls anyway.
Most companies live in this space for years. They normalize the chaos and call it culture. They confuse movement with momentum.
The Way Out: The Empowerment Dynamic
If the Drama Triangle reveals the trap, David Emerald’s Empowerment Dynamic offers the way out. Introduced in 2006, it’s become a go-to framework for coaches and leaders who want to shift teams out of drama and into ownership. Instead of Victim, Persecutor, and Rescuer, it reframes the roles as Creator, Challenger, and Coach, so teams can stop reacting and start producing real outcomes.
“Transformational Leaders do not tolerate drama. They replace the reactive roles of Victim, Persecutor, and Rescuer with proactive, empowered roles: Creator, Challenger, and Coach.”
Creators define the outcome and take responsibility for getting there.
Challengers identify gaps and push for innovation and growth.
Coaches develop capability and build ownership.
This is not about theory. This is what leadership looks like when it drives results. This is how execution becomes a habit.
Escaping Drama Requires Courage
You cannot lead transformation from inside the triangle. You have to step out of the reactive roles. You have to stop blaming. Stop rescuing. Stop tolerating victim thinking. You must lead by example. You do this by answering this question “What do I really want?” The answer is always the same. Human beings fundamentally crave success, at home, with friends and at work. So the answer to that question will be that “you want to be successful.” No act on that answer and ask the next question “what is the single most valuable challenge my team and I need to solve to improve the three pillars? Then act on it and don’t let anything get in your way. Don’t take no for an answer. Model ownership. Drive clarity. Expect results. Challenge your team to lead with you.
When you lead this way, you create a team that is empowered, focused, and accountable. You eliminate noise and build momentum. You stop reacting and start executing.
This is the mindset shift every high-performing team needs. And it starts with you.
It’s Time to Lead Like You Mean It
If you want execution, you have to kill the drama. That means you go first. Step out of the triangle. Stop reacting. Start leading.
Instead of being the victim, define the outcome and get after it. Instead of persecuting, challenge your team with purpose and clarity. Instead of rescuing, coach them to solve their own problems. Build leaders, not dependents.
“Execution isn’t a mystery. It’s a decision. Drama is optional.”
Ready to lead a team that actually gets sh*t done?
Start with this:
Audit your language – Catch and kill victim speak, blame, and rescuing in your daily interactions.
Coach your team to clarity – Ask, “What does success look like?” and hold them to it.
Challenge without controlling – Make space for innovation by pushing ownership, not pressure.
Be the Creator, Challenger, and Coach – Every. Single. Day.
This is your shot to lead differently. Take it.
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→ Want expert guidance to build a high-performing, drama-free team? Book a 15-minute consult with a 120VC Leadership Coach.
No more drama. Just results. Let’s go.
