"Growth warning: bruised ego ahead"

Leading people should come with a warning, for example ever left a meeting with that sinking feeling?

Someone asked a question you didn’t expect. Someone pointed out something you missed.And suddenly, what you didn’t see now feels... obvious.

You feel a bit daft. A bit exposed.
Like, how did I not think of that?

Moments like this can leave a mark.

One solution? Never let it happen again.
Cover every base. Anticipate every question. Prepare like a demon.

But as we saw in yesterday’s email, overpreparing can backfire.​
It hardens your perspective. It makes it harder to let better ideas in.

It’s not just hindsight. It’s not just embarrassment.

It’s that moment when your perspective gets reshaped in real time, and your brain catches up after the fact.

It can feel like failure. But it’s not.

It’s growth. It’s collaboration. It’s humility in action.

Yes, your ego just got dented.

But if you can accept that this is what good interactions do, it becomes something else entirely:

A sign you were open.
A sign you were listening.
A sign you let yourself be changed.

Because what feels obvious now was invisible just moments ago, until someone else helped you see.

Until next time,
Dermot
​The Messy Middle

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