Work That Works

Principle #2Embrace The ScratchyUncomfortable Is the New Norm

In Principle #1: Leadership Is an Inside Job, you became comfortable by getting to know yourself. In this principle, I'd like you get very uncomfortable by embracing the scratchy. What do I mean by that? When something takes you out of your comfort zone, I call that feeling being scratchy. Sometimes we're thrown out of our comfort zone by outside forces, but this chapter is about purposeful, self-motivated change for you and your greatest asset: your employees.

Why should you care about getting scratchy? Because scratchiness is the opposite of putting your head in the sand and trying to hang on to the status quo. Feeling uncomfortable is linked to sound business practices like continuous innovation, being frank about any problems that exist, and always scanning the horizon for future challenges so your business can respond quickly and nimbly. Getting out of your comfort zone may require restating company goals, pruning processes or people, confronting difficult topics, and being honest about longstanding problems for the first time. It also shows up in positive ways such as being open-minded about what your employees tell you, restating company goals, having permission to take risks and fail up, being able to admit a mistake without fear, welcoming creativity, and building your skills in personal preferences ...