Good
There are two opposing traps into which leaders frequently fall.
The obsessive pursuit of perfect.
The insatiable momentum of good enough.
The obsessive pursuit of perfect mires a leader in tinkering with an idea or project until paralysis sets in.
Good ideas atrophy as an unrealistic level of excellence is sought at the cost of relevance and progress.
The trap of pursuing perfection is rooted in good intentions tied up by desire for control and avoidance of conflict.
The insatiable momentum of good enough feels really good and appears highly productive.
Left unexamined, this approach becomes reliant on scrappiness to a point that leaves a wake of chaos for those around it.
The trap of pursuing good enough creates early momentum but a backlog of resource debt that is overlooked for the sake of maintaining perceived momentum.
Every leader has a bias towards one direction.
Trying to find the perfect balance between the two traps is just the pursuit of perfect in disguise.
The work of a leader is to define clear outcomes that create the conditions for good to occur.
Coffee is Good,
- Morning Cup