It’s easy for many of us to see an issue as a bad thing – something to be avoided. After all, issues usually lead to some measure of discomfort, so why shouldn’t we avoid them?
If history teaches us anything, it is that issues are to be expected, not avoided. We encounter new or recurring issues every day and that’s especially true if we belong to a progressive company. When we charge forward into new territories or endeavors, we expect to meet obstacles, barriers and challenges. It’s how life works and how we grow.
Every issue then, must be viewed as an opportunity for growth, an opportunity:
- to shed things that are holding us back,
- to collaborate with our teammates,
- to try something new that leads to a better place.
Clearly, issues are good, not bad. The only issues that pose a real threat to the vitality of an organization are the ones that are avoided and unresolved. Unresolved issues have a compounding, detrimental effect on individuals and teams, impeding progress and stifling growth. So please, for your own personal good and the good of your team, embrace the issues you face as opportunities. Open yourself up to the better possibilities that follow needed change.
