Leo Varadkar Reflects on Emotional Toll of Leadership, Regrets Limited Personal Support for Colleagues
Dublin – Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has expressed regret over not being able to spend more personal time supporting colleagues during his tenure as Prime Minister. In a candid conversation on the new RTÉ programme Uncharted with Ray Goggins, Varadkar reflected on the emotional toll of leadership and the limitations he faced in connecting with ministers and TDs.
The series follows Varadkar, singer Lyra, and former Special Forces operator Ray Goggins on a journey through South Africa’s Drakensberg Mountains. During the episode, Varadkar shared his sense of disappointment at not being able to offer more personal encouragement to those he worked closely with.
“There was never enough time to do everything I wanted to each day,” he admitted. “I would have liked to have had 10 or 15 minutes to talk warmly with my colleagues, even just to send a few texts or voice notes—but I couldn’t manage it. That’s something I can’t change now, and I do regret it.”
Varadkar also spoke about the contrast between his life in public office and his current routine.
“I used to wake up every morning carrying the weight of responsibility for five million people. Now, I wake up thinking about my partner, my friends, and my family. It’s a big shift—and a very different way of living.”
Leo Varadkar stepped down as leader of Fine Gael in March of last year and formally resigned as Taoiseach two weeks later. He has since taken on a new role as a strategic advisor with Penta, a US-based public affairs and communications firm whose clients include major corporations such as Microsoft, Google, and JP Morgan.
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