Finding Your Discomfort Zone

Leadership is complex and requires skills and strengths in a number of areas. Many people think leadership focuses on strengths and skills. While this is a big part of leadership, it’s not all of it. It’s important for leaders to get comfortable with being uncomfortable, too. Feeling uncomfortable or being in an uncomfortable position in the workplace is as much a part of leadership as mentoring, delegating responsibilities, and monitoring employees.

Many leaders shy away from being uncomfortable. They are willing to do difficult things for their careers, but they don’t want to be uncomfortable. This can result in shying away from tasks and responsibilities, which can ultimately have an impact on the leader’s team, as well as the organization itself.

However, being uncomfortable as a leader is simply part of the process. It is important that leaders not shy away from being uncomfortable so they can lead teams effectively and contribute to organizational success. Below are three reasons why leaders need to embrace uncomfortability.

Being uncomfortable means you’re growing

Many people think that once you’re in a leadership position, work is easy. All you have to do is make sure employees are doing their jobs and sign some paperwork every now and then. But that’s not what leadership is at all. Instead, when you move up in the company and shift toward leadership positions, you have to work harder and do more for your company to achieve operational and financial goals. But even when you reach a leadership position, it’s important to continue to push yourself to improve and strengthen your skills.

In order to do that, leaders must be willing to be uncomfortable, and this means pushing yourself beyond your comfort zone. If you shy away from it, you’re missing out on an opportunity for growth. You can become stuck, and may not be able to advance your career the way you want to.

Being uncomfortable means your employees are growing

Another reason you might be uncomfortable is because your employees are growing. As a leader, you may find yourself in a position that requires you to push your employees. You may want to push your employees to improve productivity or to help them achieve greater successes on their individual career paths. You may need to push your employees in order to achieve organizational goals and objectives, such as meeting production numbers.

This can be hard to do. Confrontation is rarely a comfortable situation, and if you’re pushing your employees, you may be forced to engage in some confrontation. This, however, can ultimately be a good thing. And if you want your employees to improve or to reach your production goals, you have to be willing to be uncomfortable as a leader. If you back off when you start to feel it, your employees won’t grow and improve, and you may not be able to achieve organizational objectives.

Being uncomfortable your company is growing

Finally, if you’re uncomfortable as a leader, it may mean that your company is going through growth and changes, and your work is reflecting that transformation. When changes occur in the organization, you are forced to change. This can be uncomfortable as you adjust to the changes and find a path to success in the new environment. As a leader, it’s imperative to adapt to changes when they occur so that you can keep leading your team members to achieve their goals and objectives. Allowing yourself to be uncomfortable as the company goes through changes means you’re adapting. That makes you a key asset, as not only can you help the organization navigate through periods of growth, but your team members as well. It may be uncomfortable to adapt, but it is a sign that the company is growing and will continue to be successful.

It’s not always easy to embrace being uncomfortable when you’re at the helm. In fact, many leaders try to shy away from these situations. But being uncomfortable is an important part of effective leadership. Rather than avoiding it, leaders need to recognize the value of being uncomfortable so they can embrace opportunities for growth and use them to strengthen their skills.

This piece was originally posted by David Chou, Chief Information and Digital Officer at Children’s Mercy Hospital, on his blog page. To follow him on Twitter, click here.