You hear it all the time – leaders saying that they want their team members to be hungry. But what does that mean, exactly? And why is being hungry a good thing? Here, Pete shares his thoughts about why this metaphor matters.
And to help your team get to that sweet spot of just the right amount of hungry, check out our GROW-it program here.
When I was in my mid-30s and Dean and I co-founded Sage Presence, I had already spent about a decade working for someone else. A couple years into running our company, a metaphor formed in my mind about the difference between being an employee and co-running a business.
Working for someone else felt like being shackled to a cafeteria table—and every so often, someone would bring me a tray of food that I could mindlessly eat. Predictable, safe, and honestly… pretty lifeless.
Running my own business felt like huddling with my family around a campfire, and then stepping out into the dark woods to hunt for something we could bring back, cook, and share. Unpredictable, uncomfortable, and full of life.
That metaphor isn’t just about entrepreneurship—it’s about presence. Presence requires being in the moment. Not drifting into the past. Not fantasizing about the future. Being fully here.
When I worked for someone else, I didn’t have to be present. The work was predictable. Nothing required me to be fully awake. It felt like living in a blur between yesterday and tomorrow.
Once Sage Presence launched, I had to network, meet prospects, talk about our work, sell myself—and at the beginning, I was extremely uncomfortable. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know how to present our value. I didn’t yet know who we were as a company.
But discomfort forced me to be alive. It forced me into the moment. And with practice, I got better. I found my voice. I learned how to talk about our value. I learned how to connect with others. Eventually, those conversations became easier.
And then something surprising happened: I got too comfortable. Conversations with prospects started to feel identical. Nothing felt fresh. I wasn’t really seeing or hearing people—I was on autopilot. And that’s just as bad as being too nervous.
You don’t want to be starving—so nervous that you can’t think. But you also don’t want to be stuffed—so comfortable that you stop paying attention. The sweet spot is being a little hungry. A little uncertain. A little stretched.
That slight discomfort puts you right in the present moment. It sharpens your senses. It makes you curious. It keeps you engaged with the person in front of you.
If you represent your organization, I invite you to intentionally seek that level of productive discomfort. And if you lead others, encourage your team to do the same.
Being “just uncomfortable enough” keeps you alert, responsive, human, and fully present. And presence is what makes people connect with you, trust you, and want to work with you.
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