Want to develop as a leader? Embrace pain

I came across an interesting story not long ago about how our muscles grow and develop. According to medical research, “Muscle size increases when a person continually challenges the muscles to deal with higher levels of resistance or weight. This process is known as

hypertrophy. Muscle hypertrophy occurs when fibers sustain damage or injury. The body repairs damaged fibers by fusing them, which increases the mass and size of the muscles.” 

 

Did you catch that? Muscles build when there is resistance. 

 

When it comes to our personal growth and our growth as leaders, we tend to stay away from situations that cause us pain. And often, the very thing that will move us in the direction of more growth and development, is the very thing we try to avoid. Why? Because it’s painful or because we are unwilling to pay the price for that growth. It’s the ultimate catch-22.

 

In “The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth,” here’s how John Maxwell defines the Law of the Rubber Band: “Growth stops when you lose the tension between where you are and where you could be.” There are many uses for a rubber band, but it’s of no use or value until it’s stretched. 

 

As a leader, how willing and open are you to being stretched for the sake of growth? What sacrifices are you willing to make to become a better leader tomorrow? Unless you are stretched you will never reach your full leadership potential. 

 

What does that look like in leadership? Let’s consider these two ways:

 

You grow in your leadership as you resist your comfort zones

 

When you begin moving out of your comfort zones - those familiar places where you routinely operate with a great degree of predictability, then you will begin to feel resistance. It’s akin to the feeling you had when the training wheels came off when learning how to ride a bike. All of your training and learning up to that point have prepared you for the next step. In order to grow, you must be willing to move in the direction of the things you’ve resisted the most up to this point.

 

In the book “Originals - How Non-Conformists Move the World,” Adam Grant quotes John Kotter who sheds additional light here stating, “Without a sense of urgency, people… won’t make sacrifices. Instead, they cling to the status quo and resist.” Perhaps in your leadership, this is where you find yourself – with no sense of urgency. Here’s what you need to know – without embracing resistance that will develop you as a leader, you will stay right where you are. Without a sense of urgency, you will be at the same pace a year from now as you find yourself today. Your personal growth and development will only happen when you are willing and prepared to make the sacrifices to get there. 

 

You grow in your leadership when you embrace the tension of growth

 

Developing your leadership mettle happens when you embrace the tensions of growth. I’m not talking about the tension that arises due to strained relationships or conflict in the office. The tension that I am referring to is the tension that’s created when you recognize that your comfort zone is no longer serving you well and it’s time to get out of it. It’s the tension that takes place when you move from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset and from a negative attitude to a positive attitude. It’s the tension that takes place as John Maxwell says

when you are willing to give up security for significance and addition for multiplication.

 

Ultimately, by embracing the tension of growth you will develop a new set of leadership muscles and fortitude you didn’t have before. 

 

Final Thoughts

 

Your personal growth and development and that of your leadership occur when you embrace the tension and put resistance to work. As you embrace the tension, you will grow as a leader. This is how you put resistance to good work.

 

©2022 Doug Dickerson. Doug Dickerson is a certified leadership speaker, trainer, and coach. Learn more at dougdickerson.net/.