Why do you need to create a sense of urgency?

I was in a rough reading patch and needed some inspiration.

Randomly cracked open Reinventing Organizations and ended up on this page:

This quote resonated with me, and helped solidify my leadership and management style.

That’s part of why I ended up at @ConvertKit.

It’s somewhere I feel enabled to live out this philosophy. To help engineers connect to our mission and do their best work.

I’ve gotten flak from multiple managers over the years for not creating a sense of urgency.

My reasoning?

The human brain doesn’t operate at its best, and certainly not most creatively, when it’s in fight or flight mode.

“But I’ve done some of my best work under deadlines and high pressure!”

Great, set that urgency for yourself.

There’s a huge difference between external vs intrinsic motivation.

Create an environment where people can thrive.

Help them feel safe and secure, so they can focus on being their best instead of living up to someone else’s expectations.

And then keep doing the work to make that environment possible.