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<v Speaker 1>Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of

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<v Speaker 1>performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalachieving. This

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<v Speaker 1>is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellavaledo.

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<v Speaker 2>Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.

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<v Speaker 2>It's episode six seventy nine. Today, I want to talk

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<v Speaker 2>about a quote that if you truly understand, it will

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<v Speaker 2>change the way you lead, the way you think, in

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<v Speaker 2>the way you respond to pressure. What stands in the

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<v Speaker 2>way becomes the way. Just let that sit with you

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<v Speaker 2>for a second, because most leaders spend their entire career

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<v Speaker 2>trying to avoid what stands in their way. They dodge it,

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<v Speaker 2>they delay it, they delegate it, they complain about it,

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<v Speaker 2>and in doing that they miss the entire point. The

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<v Speaker 2>obstacle is not in your way. The obstacle is your way.

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<v Speaker 2>Every single leadership problem you're dealing with right now, the

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<v Speaker 2>difficult employee, the budget issue, the broken culture, that failed plan,

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<v Speaker 2>that tension in your team, that is not something to

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<v Speaker 2>work around. That is your assignment. That is your leadership moment.

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<v Speaker 2>That is your red key moment. And most leaders never

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<v Speaker 2>flip that key. They stay in what's comfortable, they operate

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<v Speaker 2>in what they already know. They repeat what worked before

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<v Speaker 2>and hope it works again. But leadership does not grow

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<v Speaker 2>in comfort, It grows in friction. Think about your best leaders,

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<v Speaker 2>the ones you respect, the ones people would follow anywhere.

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<v Speaker 2>They were not built in easy moments. They were built

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<v Speaker 2>in the moments where something stood in their way and

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<v Speaker 2>they decided to go straight through it, not around it,

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<v Speaker 2>through it. And here's where this gets real. For you

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<v Speaker 2>walk into work tomorrow and there's a problem waiting for you.

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<v Speaker 2>Maybe it's a conversation you've been avoiding. Maybe it's a

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<v Speaker 2>performance issue you have let slide. Maybe it's a culture

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<v Speaker 2>problem that has been building under the surface. Most leaders

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<v Speaker 2>will say I will get to that later. Strong leaders

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<v Speaker 2>say that is exactly where I'm going first, because what

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<v Speaker 2>stands in the way becomes the way. That problem is

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<v Speaker 2>not blocking your leadership, it is revealing it. You do

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<v Speaker 2>not prove you're a leader when things are smooth. You

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<v Speaker 2>prove it when things are messy. You prove it when

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<v Speaker 2>there's tension in the room. You prove it when people

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<v Speaker 2>are watching to see if you are going to step

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<v Speaker 2>up or step back. And here's the part nobody tells you.

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<v Speaker 2>The obstacle will not move until you do. It doesn't shrink,

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<v Speaker 2>it doesn't disappear, It does not solve itself. It waits.

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<v Speaker 2>It waits for you to either face it or avoid it,

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<v Speaker 2>And every time you avoid it, it grows. Every time

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<v Speaker 2>you face it, you grow. So let's make this practical.

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<v Speaker 2>Here are three ways to start living this out today. First,

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<v Speaker 2>identify your obstacle right now. What is the one thing

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<v Speaker 2>you know you need to address but have been putting off.

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<v Speaker 2>Not five things, not a whole list, just one. Name it,

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<v Speaker 2>because clarity is power. Second, move toward it fast, not recklessly,

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<v Speaker 2>not emotionally, but intentionally. Schedule the conversation, address the issue,

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<v Speaker 2>step into the tension. Speed matters here. The longer you wait,

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<v Speaker 2>the more your team starts to read your silence as acceptance,

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<v Speaker 2>and that's how culture starts to slip. Third, extract the lesson.

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<v Speaker 2>Every obstacle has some thing to teach you about your team,

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<v Speaker 2>about your systems, about yourself. If you walk through it

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<v Speaker 2>and learn nothing, you wasted the opportunity. If you walk

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<v Speaker 2>through it and grow, you just leveled up your leadership. Now,

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<v Speaker 2>let me take this one step deeper. What stands in

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<v Speaker 2>the way does not only apply to problems. It applies

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<v Speaker 2>to fear, it applies to doubt, It applies to the

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<v Speaker 2>voice in your head that says you're not ready for this.

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<v Speaker 2>That voice is not your enemy. That voice is pointing

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<v Speaker 2>directly at your next level. Because the things that scare

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<v Speaker 2>you are usually the things that will grow you. The

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<v Speaker 2>presentation you're nervous about, the decision you're hesitant to make,

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<v Speaker 2>the change you're afraid to lead. That is the way,

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<v Speaker 2>not the safe option, not the easy path, the thing

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<v Speaker 2>you're avoiding. That is where your leadership is waiting. And

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<v Speaker 2>here is the final true I want you to walk

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<v Speaker 2>away with. You cannot build a strong team by avoiding

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<v Speaker 2>hard things. You cannot build trust by ignoring problems. You

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<v Speaker 2>cannot build credibility by playing it safe. Your team is

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<v Speaker 2>watching how you respond when something stands in your way.

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<v Speaker 2>They're watching to see if you step forward or step back,

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<v Speaker 2>and in those moments, you are teaching them what leadership

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<v Speaker 2>looks like. So the next time something stands in your way,

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<v Speaker 2>I want you to pause for a second and say

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<v Speaker 2>this to yourself, good, this is it. This is the moment,

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<v Speaker 2>because what stands in the way becomes the way. And

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<v Speaker 2>if you start leading like that, you stop avoiding leadership

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<v Speaker 2>and you start owning it. So here is your challenge

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<v Speaker 2>for today. Find the one thing that you have been avoiding,

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<v Speaker 2>step into it, handle it with clarity, with confidence, and

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<v Speaker 2>with purpose. Because on the other side of that obstacle

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<v Speaker 2>is not just a solution, it is a stronger version

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<v Speaker 2>of you as a leader. And that is what this

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<v Speaker 2>is all about. Seven minutes a day, making you sharper, stronger,

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<v Speaker 2>and more intentional. This has been the seven Minute Leadership Podcast,

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<v Speaker 2>and I thank you for listening.

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<v Speaker 1>For more Paul Fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.