High stakes. Big outcome. But someone on your team didn’t deliver as expected—and the cost is high.
Your reaction in this moment defines your leadership.
When the pitch isn’t perfect, when the client meeting stumbles, or when a new process rollout doesn’t go as planned, the instinct is often to rush in and fix everything immediately. To demand an instant turnaround. To expect immediate mastery.
But here’s what I’ve learned in 20 years of coaching teams:
Growth or Transformation isn’t a light switch. It’s more like watching a garden grow.
The Pressure for Instant Mastery
I see it all too often—managers sending teams to a single training session, expecting them to emerge polished and perfect. Teams feeling the pressure to deliver flawless results overnight. And both sides end up frustrated when reality doesn’t match expectations.
Because here’s the truth: real growth and development follows nature’s timeline, not our deadlines.
Mastering a skill—whether it’s public speaking, client relationships, or leadership—requires:
✔ Practice in low-stakes environments
✔ Persistence through repeated attempts
✔ Space for reflection and adjustment
✔ Permission to learn from missteps
✔ Time to build muscle memory
✔ Consistent, patient coaching
✔ Reiteration until patterns become second nature
Think about any skill you’ve mastered—whether it’s playing an instrument, perfecting your golf swing, or learning to lead a team. It wasn’t the first attempt that made you proficient. It was the hundredth. The thousandth. Each repetition layered another level of competency.
We Don’t Leap Up—We Grow Up
A statement I heard recently stuck with me:
We don’t leap up, we grow up. (Thank you, Beth Moore.)
And that’s exactly how leadership works.
The next time you see your team struggling with a new skill or initiative, pause and ask yourself:
❓ Am I expecting a leap when what they really need is steady ground for growth?
The most transformative changes in your team won’t happen in a day. But they will happen—one practice session, one feedback conversation, one small win at a time.
Ready to Cultivate Growth in Your Team?
If you want to build a team that performs under pressure, delivers with confidence, and grows into their full potential, I can help. Let’s talk about a coaching approach that builds mastery, not just quick fixes.
📩 Connect with me here to start the conversation.
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