Hello Everyone,
It has been an incredibly busy day, but as usual cooking sparks thought with me, so I wanted to give you a quick note.
A reminder that I will be going live at 10am EST (tomorrow) on Friday, 9.12.2025, for the weekly Cultivar Coffee Chat. Join me to hang out and chat about the intersections between life and leadership, feel free to bring your own stories and questions.
This is my $60 solid metal garlic press. Extravagant, no?
I went through 5 garlic presses in 7 years, and they all cost around $10-$14.
They worked just fine, but my grip always seemed to be a bit too strong; and in trying to get as much out of a clove as I could, inevitably I’d squeeze a bit too hard, and it would snap at the hinge.
Were they subpar garlic presses?
Was I exerting too much force?
Was I putting too much garlic in at one time
(the most likely answer)?
Perhaps it was a combination of all three.
But around five or six years ago, my wife had had enough, and researched the most unbreakable and efficient garlic press she could. It’s now used at least 4 nights a week, sometimes every night. And there’s no sign of it giving out.
It’s not always the action taken or its implementation that causes things to fail.
Sometimes, it’s the level of intensity at which action is taken.
Failure can be a sign you or the team aren’t equipped to handle what you are trying to push through.
Outcome depends not just on what tool, skill, or methodology you are using, but the amount of intensity or effort you put behind it.
There is such a thing as too much pressure, conversely, applying that same amount of force with a more robust tool, capability, or thought out strategy might be just what is needed.
So don’t take the same actions or apply the same amount of effort for every situation even when it looks close enough that it should work.
Instead, take stock of yourself and your people, and press-check your bandwith, your capability levels, and the amount of garlic your trying to crush.
Until Tommorow,
- Chris
Contour Lines is my anecdotal newsletter segment that weaves whats going on in my life with my thoughts on leadership as well as personal and organizational development.
If something resonates, leave a comment, or reach out to chat - I always love hearing people’s stories.
Want to chat about personal growth or walking a path of authentic leadership but aren’t sure were to start? You are always welcome to book a free call to either get fresh perspective or see if we’d work well together in cultivating your capacity to lead.