Be Like Water: Leadership Lessons for Your First 90 Days in a New Role

What should you do during your first days as a leader?Many new managers and executives feel pressure to prove themselves by introducing new processes, reorganizing teams, or making immediate changes. But what if the best first move is something different?Inspired by Bruce Lee's famous advice to "be like water," Kevin Pannell explores why effective leadership begins with observation, curiosity, and trust before transformation.Drawing on lessons from the U.S. Navy, emergency management, healthcare IT, and years spent leading Project Management Offices, Kevin shares how experienced leaders can balance confidence with humility as they step into a new organization.In this episode, you'll learn:Why experience should help you ask better questions before providing better answers.How to avoid solving the wrong problem during your first 90 days.Why every process has a story worth understanding.A practical leadership framework: Observe. Orient. Optimize.How People. Process. Progress. creates sustainable organizational change.Whether you're a PMO leader, project manager, executive, supervisor, entrepreneur, or simply beginning a new chapter in your career, this episode offers practical leadership advice you can apply immediately.Mentioned in this EpisodeBruce Lee's "Be Like Water" philosophyBuilding situational awareness before making changeLeadership transitionsPMO leadershipOrganizational change managementTrust and stakeholder engagementConnect with Kevin: ???? peopleprocessprogress.com |???? Instagram & X: @thekevinpannell |???? YouTube: Own, Move, AnchorIf You Enjoyed This Episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with someone beginning a new leadership role. Your support helps more leaders discover practical conversations about people, process, and progress.