The apprentice asked her mentor, “Where is the path to remarkable success?”
The mentor pointed to a wooden gate. The student hurried through, only to find an empty courtyard.
She returned, frustrated.
The mentor smiled and said, “The gate is not the path. The path begins when you step into the open space.”
Leadership, and the pursuit of success, often feel the same. We clean up our calendars, close our office doors, even announce new priorities. That’s the gate. The real test starts when we step into the space we’ve created, when we risk the uncertainty of the courtyard and invite others to step in with us.
The mentor’s point, that the gate is not the path, deserves reflection. Leadership isn’t about clearing space, nodding along, or weighing yes against no. It’s about stepping in, earning commitment, and daring to look for what others don’t see. This is where the path begins.
Enjoy your September news2use!
Regards,
Dan
“Relevant & pragmatic ideas, tools and insights to play at your best.”
For You
Preparation can, at times, feel like progress. You free up time, reorganize priorities, or carve out “thinking space.” All good, but this is only the doorway. The real work starts when you use that space to go after the questions you have been conveniently pushing to the side. Why are we really doing this? Who’s benefitting? What are we not talking about?
Stepping in and making the most of this newly created space means asking yourself and others tough questions and encouraging constructive challenge. People gravitate to leaders who combine curiosity with courage, and who don’t mistake tidiness for traction.
The gate opens when you clear the clutter; the path begins when you walk in, questions in hand.
For You & Your Team
Ask a leadership team how aligned their business functions are with each other and you will often hear a quick yes. Challenge a little deeper and the quick yes becomes a more doubtful defense of cross–functional slippage. Too often, alignment is assumed, characterized by nodding heads, polite agreement, but little real commitment.
True alignment is earned. It comes from wrestling with differences, testing each other’s assumptions, and staying in the conversation until everyone owns the outcome. That kind of alignment holds when pressure hits. Assumed alignment collapses the moment things get tough.
What’s the quality of your alignment that your organization (and your customers) rely on right now?
For You, Your Team & Your Business
Leaders get stuck in binary traps; yes or no, short-term or long-term, play it safe or take the risk. If you take A, you are opposing B. Binary choices create adversaries, not allies. Two choices never do justice to the complexity we face. When you and your team force yourselves to create a third option, something changes. You move from defending positions to generating possibilities.
The third way isn’t compromise, it’s imagination. It reframes the issue, opens new paths, and often creates more energy than either of the first two options alone. The discipline of three turns stuck debates into creative conversations, and it’s often the spark that sets businesses apart.
People, Places & Technology
Sometimes leadership wisdom shows up in the places we choose to pause. Last week I had the chance to spend time at the Adler Historic Guesthouse in Brixen, South Tyrol, Italy. Part work, part pleasure, it was the perfect Auszeit; a family-run guesthouse that combines historic charm with a fresh, contemporary spirit. Nestled in the old town, next to the Eisach River, and surrounded by mountains, the Adler offers more than comfort; it creates the kind of atmosphere where the pace of life feels just right. If you’re looking for a place that nourishes both body and mind, I can wholeheartedly recommend it.
Thought for the Day
“If your choices only swing
between yes and no,
you’re not leading,
you’re voting.”
— Dan Norenberg