Chase Hughes defines leadership as "the ability to generate followership from your behavior by itself, without a title, without a uniform, and without some secret script." The real test is whether you're a role model for the people you want to influence when they aren't watching — i.e., your off-camera behavior, not your stated authority.
He backs the emphasis on non-verbal consistency with a (disputed) neuroscience claim: that the brain evolved hierarchical structures mainly for non-verbal/emotional processing (limbic system, spinal cord, cerebellum), with no dedicated structure for language — so he calls verbal communication "the least effective" way to establish leadership, compared to consistent off-camera behavior. This overlaps with Congruence Principle (Words, Tone, Body, Eye Contact) (words/tone/body/eye-contact alignment) but pushes further, treating behavior as sufficient on its own regardless of what's said.
Part of his The Five Authority Trip Wires / CDLGE authority framework, alongside Confidence as Survivability ("I Will Be Okay") and Discipline as Prioritizing Your Future Self.
Source: Chase Hughes, "Fix these FIVE things DESTROYING your AUTHORITY."