New Skills to Navigate Continuous Change

New Skills to Navigate Continuous Change

From HBR IdeaCast by Harvard Business Review

May 5, 2026 · 31 min · Episode 1077

About this episode

Nilofer Merchant discusses how traditional leadership habits hinder organizations from thriving in continuous change and offers strategies to adapt.

What if the biggest barrier to change isn’t resistance—but the way we’ve been taught to lead? Nilofer Merchant, an author and leadership expert, says a number of habits are holding organizations of all sizes back. She walks through behaviors to adapt and not just survive but thrive in a world of continuous change, including normalizing discomfort, not overlooking your best ideas, and separating confidence from competence. Merchant wrote the book Our Best Work: Break Free from the 24 Invisible Norms That Limit Us.

People in this episode

Host: Harvard Business Review

Guest: Nilofer Merchant

Topics covered

  • change management
  • leadership
  • organizational behavior
  • personal development
  • adaptability

Keywords

  • change
  • leadership
  • habits
  • organizations
  • confidence
  • competence
  • discomfort
  • innovation

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Our Best Work: Break Free from the 24 Invisible Norms That Limit Us

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