Don’t ever agree to disagree.

We all have issues. A shocking confession, I know! By definition, an issue is an important topic for debate or discussion. Consequently, issues aren’t just problems to be solved, threats to be thwarted, or obstacles to overcome, but they include opportunities to be grasped and challenges to be embraced.

Yes. It’s true – happened this September. My business partner Alex Freytag & I were Halfway up Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, when our guide left us. To be fair, his wife was having an emergency appendectomy. But still, it did cause us more than a little concern; we still had 6,000 vertical feet to go (the peak is at 19,341 feet).

Some of the best meetings that I’ve been in lately are the ones where members of the leadership team challenge each other. There’s debate and pushback and the discussions are heated. Each person is actively engaged putting the greater good of the organization ahead of personal agendas. Sometimes the feedback they give each other stings a little. But, when the dust settles there’s clarity around the root cause. Conflict creates clarity.

Organizational Vision Problems

Most entrepreneurs can clearly see a vision for their business. Their problem is that they assume everyone else in the organization can see it too. Most of the time they don’t, and as a result, leaders end up frustrated, staff become confused, and the company gets stuck in the mud without any traction to move forward.