In a webinar, former Washington Post editor Marty Baron spoke of some of the challenges he faced running the paper. When he assumed the position, the Post had been losing millions of dollars and needed to recraft its strategy in order to survive.
“There is a gravitational pull toward what used to be vs. what needs to be,” Baron said. “And not just in the newsroom, but on the business side, too.”
I think the pull is evident in most organizations as well as in personal lives. We are much more comfortable with what is known, and implementing change evokes fear and discomfort. Yet, evolving into what “needs to be” is where progress occurs.
Think about the tension that Baron describes the next time you’re faced with a decision. Let the future orientation win.
