Leading with the Current: Paddleboarding and the Art of Operational Alignment

Christina Guerrier

31 Mar 2025 — 1 min read

This weekend, I unplugged (for just a bit). Just me, my family, and our paddleboards gliding down the Santa Fe.

It was one of those rare moments of peace—and insight. Watching my son gain confidence with each stroke, I noticed how his turns became more intentional, how he learned to balance movement with direction. My own paddle wobbled when I overcorrected or failed to anticipate the current. But when I paid attention, when I trusted the water and made slight, timely shifts—I stayed on course.

My mind drifted—just like my board—to the undercurrents of work and leadership.

What I realized on the river is exactly what I see in operations and culture: alignment doesn’t happen by force—it happens through awareness, trust, and timely adjustments.

When You Push Too Hard

In operations, the instinct is often to muscle through. Get the thing done. Move faster. Hit the target.

But the biggest mistake I’ve seen in fast-moving teams? Mistaking hustle for progress. Sometimes, what looks like action is just misalignment in motion.

Push too hard without realignment, and you miss the turn. You override signals. You break trust.

The best operators I know don’t paddle harder when things get off course—they pause, recalibrate, and find the flow again.

Adjusting Without Losing Momentum

Alignment doesn’t mean standing still. It means adjusting with intention.

In a past role, our team was launching a new internal system during a company reorganization. Initial momentum was strong, but midway, resistance surfaced. Instead of charging ahead, we paused, listened, and realigned around frontline feedback. That pause saved us time—and more importantly, restored trust.

Like paddleboarding, it wasn’t about powering through. It was about adjusting to stay on course.

Final Thought: Progress Isn’t Always a Straight Line

Leadership isn’t about paddling harder. It’s about adjusting with intention.

Where in your work are you forcing direction—when a shift in posture might be all it takes?

Beyond the Rainbow: Turning Illusions into Strategy

I was driving through a rainstorm, wipers working overtime, water drumming on the roof. In my rearview mirror, a rainbow appeared, arching gently across the gray. A moment later, after a few turns, the rainbow was in front of me instead. It struck me how perfectly a rainbow captures the

Same Song, Different Language

Before our upcoming trip, I casually told my son, “Let’s make a mix tape.” He blinked. “A what?” “You know,” I said, “a collection of songs you compile for the road.” “Ohhh,” he said. “You mean… a playlist?” Same concept. Same intention. Different words. Different worlds. It reminded me

The Quiet Courage to Speak Up

On a recent flight, I found myself seated behind a man whose voice was impossible to ignore. He wasn’t speaking to me—he was speaking across the aisle, over someone else, as if the rest of us simply weren’t there. Loud. Oblivious. Relentless. For two hours, the cabin

Details Matter—Until They Don’t

Sometimes, the smallest things reveal the biggest truths. A while back, I found myself in a negotiation—one that had unfolded carefully over several weeks. The terms were clear, the agreement nearly finalized. And then, a tiny detail surfaced. A technicality. A technicality so small it hardly seemed worth mentioning.