On Leadership and the Viscosity of Candor

As a leader, I am fascinated by the notion of viscosity. We create giant machines built of strong materials (steel, titanium), and yet, these machines for all their strength, will cease to function if not properly lubricated. Oil has no tensile strength, and yet, our great engines depend upon it. This is an important observation for the leader. It is dangerous to build great organizations, great productivity machines, without carefully ensuring they are “well lubricated.” The viscosity of candor is necessary, or the powerful “engines” of our enterprise may “seize” up.