Some time ago, when I still worked in executive search, I noticed a certain pattern in how many candidates would talk me through their resumes. Their stories would usually go something like this. “When I joined company XYZ they were in disarray. They didn’t know how to …., and they had no …. (fill in the blanks). I spent the first period making some real changes and improvements. We saw the benefits in the second period when costs came down, and sales really started to pick up (or some other achievement). Then in the third period things became stable. All our goals had been reached so I decided to move on.”

These stories were always told with great conviction. What struck me however was that I would often have met their predecessors or successors too. And these executives would tell me an interchangeable narrative but with themselves in the leading role.

How could this be? Were people lying or deceitful? I don’t think so. Maybe some were exaggerating a bit, as often happens in recruiting situations. But I don’t think they were being dishonest.

What worked well at one point in time can easily be considered a mistake later on and vice versa.

I believe two different phenomena occur when someone steps into a new leadership role. Things which these candidates were not aware of or chose to ignore. The first one is that context always changes over time and that challenges facing a job will change. What worked well at one point in time can easily be considered a mistake later on and vice versa. While one executive will have solved certain things, new issues come up for his successor to take care of.

When they say it’s a mess, they at least partly mean, I don’t fully understand this situation.

The second one is that people forget that when they start in a new position, they are always newbies, faced with a lot of unfamiliar aspects. No matter how experienced they are. When they say it’s a mess, they at least partly mean, I don’t fully understand this situation. But making that admission can be quite daunting and lead to anxiety. They feel they might look weak while they should look strong, particularly on first impression. Reframing their ignorance as someone else’s mess gives them the opportunity to mask their own vulnerability and be the hero who saves the day.

Feeling anxious in a new situation is perfectly normal.

Feeling anxious in a new situation is perfectly normal. We all have that. It’s part of our evolutionary survival mechanism. It triggers our alertness which allows us to choose a response: do I run, or do I face the danger? If we ignore that signal, we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to respond in an effective way. Anxiety comes with moving outside of your comfort zone. If you are able to embrace that feeling, and to step beyond the fear while maintaining your alertness, you will see more than you otherwise would. And after all, the real-life dangers of moving to a new executive job are largely imaginary.

We are all learning, all the time. It’s called growth.

There are many good reasons to show you are anxious or even vulnerable, but that you won’t let yourself be discouraged by it. It makes you human and in today’s organisations that’s what people look for in a leader. We are all learning, all the time. It’s called growth.