Something I like about Donald Trump is he say's what he thinks without sugar coating it, a bit like Boris Johnson.
Whether you agree or disagree with Trump or Boris' statements, they certainly get awkward conversations started!
Sometimes, even if the initial comment brings controversy and you wonder why you even said it, in the end isn't it better to get things out in the open and flush out things which are bubbling under the surface?
Matthew Syed writes extensively about this in 'Black Box Thinking', where he explores different responses to failure and awkward conversations, arguing that only by embracing failure can you improve and by talking about it we can learn - "feedback from failure is vital for progression".
Ultimately, if senior leaders don’t challenge themselves and encourage scrutiny from others, I don’t think that it’s really possible for them to gain genuine openness from other stakeholders. All those awkward conversations and uncomfortable truths, far from being ignored or side-lined, should be embraced by everyone – starting with those at the very top.
I believe this is a vital part of smoothing out the chinks in a company's armour and accelerating growth!
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