Speaker 1: Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of
Speaker 1: performance through strong human relations, team building, and golachieving. This
Speaker 1: is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellovledo.
Speaker 2: Hello everyone, and welcome to the Seven Minute Leadership Podcast.
Speaker 2: It's episode three twenty eight, and let me take you
Speaker 2: back to a familiar scene, a team meeting where everyone's
Speaker 2: in agreement, everyone's nodding around the table, polite laughter, the
Speaker 2: occasional that's a great idea, And then there's one person
Speaker 2: sitting a little off center who breaks the rhythm with
Speaker 2: have we thought about doing it this way instead? They're
Speaker 2: the misfit, the oddball, the one who dresses differently, thinks differently,
Speaker 2: challenges group think, and sees what the rest of the
Speaker 2: room missed. And in too many organizations that person is
Speaker 2: shut down, labeled difficult, or quietly ignored. Today, I'm here
Speaker 2: to tell you, as a leader, you need to make
Speaker 2: room for the misfits, because misfits often see what others
Speaker 2: miss and if you're serious about building an elite team,
Speaker 2: you better pay attention to them. So who are the misfits?
Speaker 2: Misfits aren't troublemakers for the sake of being disruptive. They're
Speaker 2: the ones who challenge the this is how we've always
Speaker 2: done it mentality. They bring new angles, fresh energy, and
Speaker 2: yes sometimes they bring friction, but friction creates movement. Steve
Speaker 2: Jobs once said, here's to the crazy ones, the misfits,
Speaker 2: the rebels, because the people who are crazy enough to
Speaker 2: think they can change the world are the ones who do.
Speaker 2: He wasn't exaggerating. Apple was an built by playing it safe.
Speaker 2: It was built by thinking differently. You probably have misfits
Speaker 2: on your team right now. They might be quieter, introverted
Speaker 2: creatives or bold visionaries who frustrate traditional thinkers, but they
Speaker 2: are there and they're watching to see if it's safe
Speaker 2: to speak up. So why leaders avoid misfits and why
Speaker 2: that's a mistake, because here's what happens. When misfits speak up.
Speaker 2: People roll their eyes, the idea gets labeled as too risky.
Speaker 2: Leadership avoids the discomfort of challenging the norm. The mistake
Speaker 2: in trying to maintain comfort, you smother innovation, you suffocate creativity,
Speaker 2: and worse, you send the signal that different isn't welcome here.
Speaker 2: That's not leadership, that's maintenance. If all you want is
Speaker 2: smooth meetings in zero waves. You're not leading your babysitting
Speaker 2: the status quo. And guess what, the market, the industry,
Speaker 2: your competitors, none of them care how comfortable your team feels.
Speaker 2: So you have to make room for the misfits. So
Speaker 2: how do you build a culture where misfits can thrive?
Speaker 2: Give permission to think differently. Say it out loud. I
Speaker 2: want ideas that challenge the norm. I'm okay if it
Speaker 2: gets uncomfortable in here. Once you say it, mean it
Speaker 2: and back it with action. And don't confuse discomfort with disrespect.
Speaker 2: Not every disagreement is in subordination. Some people just see
Speaker 2: a better path and have the guts to speak up.
Speaker 2: Leaders who are secure in their identity can handle being
Speaker 2: challenged and use them strategically. Have a tough problem, you
Speaker 2: need a fresh angle. Bring in your misfit and say hey,
Speaker 2: I need your brain on this. Don't hold back. That's
Speaker 2: how solutions are born that no one else saw coming.
Speaker 2: And number four, recognize them publicly when their idea works.
Speaker 2: Say it not just to them or for them, but
Speaker 2: for the rest of your team to see that thinking
Speaker 2: differently is not just tolerated, it's valued and I'll give
Speaker 2: you a real world example from years ago. At one point,
Speaker 2: NASA had a problem with ice forming on the Space
Speaker 2: Shuttle fuel tanks, and all the seasoned engineers ran through
Speaker 2: every known procedure to solve it with no solution. Then
Speaker 2: came a young engineer who wasn't part of the core team.
Speaker 2: He had a different background, no aerospace experience. He suggested
Speaker 2: a technique used in refrigeration systems instead of aerospace protocols,
Speaker 2: and that idea became the fix. He was the misfit,
Speaker 2: but he was the one who saw what everyone else missed.
Speaker 2: Great leaders aren't looking for clones. They're looking for challengers, thinkers, creatives, contrarians,
Speaker 2: the one who sees differently. So look around your organization,
Speaker 2: who's sitting on the fringe, who's been written off as
Speaker 2: too much or too different. That might be your next
Speaker 2: game changer. Make room for the misfits, not because it's trendy,
Speaker 2: but because it's smart. They just might be the ones
Speaker 2: who save your next big project or take it somewhere
Speaker 2: you've never imagined. This has been the seven minute Leadership Podcast,
Speaker 2: and I thank you for listening.
Speaker 1: For more. Paul fell of Alito Podcasts visit Paulfellowalito dot com,