Trish's Blog

“Fit” is easy to celebrate in teams. It feels comfortable. Familiar. It gives a sense that things are working. People get along. Conversations flow. There is a shared way of doing things that makes everything feel predictable.

Leaders, on the surface, that can look like strength. But fit can come at a cost.

When the focus leans too heavily on blending in, people start to edit themselves. They hold back ideas that might disrupt the flow. They soften questions that could challenge thinking. They keep perspectives to themselves because they are not quite sure how they will land.

Nothing visibly falls apart and the work keeps moving, but over time it starts to narrow in ways that are easy to miss.

Contribution alters the focus. It moves the attention away from belonging as the end goal and places it on what each person brings into the work. Their thinking. Their experience. Their way of seeing something that others might miss.

That changes behaviour. People are more willing to speak up, even when their view is different. They are more likely to test an idea, rather than wait until it feels safe. They engage with the work more fully, because they can see where they add value.

It does not remove the need for connection. It deepens it. Because real belonging is not built on sameness. It is built on knowing that what you bring is wanted, not just tolerated.

Weird Wisdom® at Work leans into that idea. Not by dismissing fit entirely, but by broadening what matters. By making space for difference to show up in a way that strengthens the work, not smooths it away.

When contribution becomes the focus, teams do not just look aligned.
They think better. They challenge more. They create space for ideas that would otherwise stay unspoken. And that is where progress starts to take shape.