When You're Chasing A Dream, Don't Forget To Bring In Others (Even When They Disagree)

As we step into an election year,?I want to highlight our recent episode with Keith Allred, executive director of the National Institute for Civil Discourse. He?reminds us that we must remember the purpose of politics. It's compromising with your neighbors, not conquering an enemy.

That same spirit can creep into our workplaces, too, where every strategic meeting can seem like this strange flexing of intellectual muscles, a display of dominance, instead of figuring out a strategy.

Keith sees meeting folks halfway as a virtue, not a weakness.?In his position, Keith oversees the organization's efforts – first, in identifying the national issues where most Americans agree on a solution and then creating the policy briefs and grassroots support needed to push the solution through Congress.

Solving a problem like surprise medical billing can seem an incredibly daunting S Curve, but that's where?Embracing Your Constraints?comes in.?Keith embraces the constraints of our polarized nation; instead of focusing on those hot-button issues where the gulf between us couldn't be wider,?he's finding those S Curves that actually have a clear, bipartisan path to mastery.

Our constraints can end up as flashing signs telling us where to focus our efforts instead.

In that same vein, Keith's a master at?Taking The Right Risks, too.?When you put two accelerants together, the launch point can seem a lot less scary, and much more approachable.?When we can tick off all the reasons this is the S Curve for us, even compromise in an election year seems possible.

Our accelerants keep us focused?on the reasons for jumping on this curve in the first place and remind us to keep our ego to the side.

Have you embraced your constraints?

Do you find ways to meet your colleagues halfway to accomplish a greater goal for your organization?

Are you looking to invest in others and accelerate your own growth? The?Smart Growth Certification?program equips you to engage in meaningful conversations about growth, giving you exclusive access to the S Curve Insight Tool. This diagnostic provides powerful insights into an individual and a team's growth experience.