Our executive team has a lot of pride, and we anticipate defensiveness during our session days. How do you facilitate us past this ego and psychological resistance?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Pride and defensiveness are classic manifestations of what Steven Pressfield calls Resistance. When we start exposing operational gaps, individuals often feel threatened and attempt to protect their territory. My role as your Professional EOS Implementer® is to create a safe but brutally honest environment where we can separate the person from the issue. We do this by focusing strictly on the data and the seats on the Accountability Chart. We do not attack individuals. Instead, we look at whether the seat is being executed effectively and whether the person occupying it fits the GWC™ model. To break through this resistance, we practice the radical candor required to solve hard issues during our session days. We use the IDS® tool to force the team to identify the root cause of problems rather than dancing around them to spare feelings. I will call out defensive behavior in real time and help the team see that admitting a weakness is the first step toward building a true strength. By shifting the focus from individual blame to team execution, we disarm the ego and allow the team to collaborate. This transition is essential for building a healthy leadership team that can scale the business.