We have a peach tree in our backyard, and last week one of its branches broke during the storms.
So this weekend I climbed our ladder, with a saw in hand, to make a clean cut so the tree could recover.
It was awkward — hard to get steady footing, find the right angle, stay balanced and safe.
Finally, I got set and started cutting. Back and forth. Back and forth.
At first it was easy. The blade glided through the wood with a nice steady rhythm.
But about halfway through the branch, it got sticky. The saw kept catching as I pulled it through the groove.
I tried pushing harder. Then harder still. Muscling it. Forcing it. Wrestling it.
But the more I pushed, the more it bound up.
Then it hit me.
The problem wasn’t my strength.
It was my alignment.
With all the awkward pieces — the ladder, the glasses to protect my eyes, the reach — I wasn’t keeping the saw straight in the cut. It was veering just enough to make the work far harder than it needed to be. And the more I tried to force it, the worse it got.
So I stopped. Reset. Realigned the saw with the cut.
And once I did that? Light pressure was all it took. A few minutes later, the limb was on the ground.
This happens at work all the time.
Last week a client told me they were struggling to get a team member to meet expectations. Their first thought?
“Maybe I’m too soft. I guess I just need to be harder on them.”
But in so many cases, the key isn’t to push harder — it’s to look at the alignment.
- What led to the misunderstanding in the first place?
- Does this person know what’s expected? do they really?
- Do you know what matters most to them?
- Is the issue a lack of skill? A lack of motivation? Are they distracted by something outside of work? Or is it something else?
When you address the real issue — the misalignment — you don’t need to force it. Things move more easily, with less strain for everyone.
So let me ask you:
Where in your work or life are you tempted to push harder, when what’s really needed is to pause and realign?
