Don’t Mistake Fear For Laziness

Lazy is the label we slap on what we don’t understand.

Like when someone misses deadlines, dodges updates, or takes forever to start the thing they said they’d do.

It’s easy to assume: “They just don’t want to do their job.”

Especially when their delays bleed into your own workload.

And sure, sometimes that’s true.

But what if instead of making assumptions that the reason people procrastinate is because they’re lazy…

…you viewed their procrastination as a symptom of someone who’s afraid to get it wrong?

For many of us, it can feel easier and less scary to be reprimanded for not doing the thing at all, than to do it imperfectly and have to fix it later.

When someone equates asking for help with being weak or a burden, correction feels like rejection.

They’ll say things like “I didn’t have enough time” or “I just didn’t have the bandwidth.”

But under the surface, it’s not logistics.

It’s fear.

Fear of wasted effort.

Fear of looking incompetent.

Fear of trying their best—and still not getting it right.

For many people, being asked to revise their work feels like failure.

And when someone’s carrying that belief? They stall or avoid it altogether.

Because in their mind, the second swing always costs more than the first.

So what does this mean for you as a leader?

It means your job isn’t to push harder.

It’s to lower the emotional stakes—so starting doesn’t feel like a setup for shame.

If the fear is being exposed as inadequate, pressure only pushes the panic deeper.

So, instead of demanding they get it “right,” or breathing down their neck about missed tasks…

Start here:

• “What would make it easier to get a first version down?”

• “Where are you getting stuck?”

• “What part feels risky to get wrong?”

Slowing down and asking genuine questions will help you uncover the real blockers, build trust faster, and teach more effectively.

Instead of defaulting to frustration, assumptions, or blanket policies built for the lowest performer.

The goal is to give people room to try, to miss, and to keep going without being punished for needing a second swing.

Over time, that’s how avoidance turns into initiative.

When people stop fearing correction, they start taking ownership.

They move faster, try new things, and learn to lead themselves.

But only if the cost of imperfection doesn’t feel higher than the cost of inaction.

Now, what if taking this approach STILL doesn't work?

What if you lower the stakes, get curious, build trust—and they still stall, resist, or blow it off?

Then you know the resistance isn’t fear. It’s avoidance.

Not everyone will work through their stuff. Not everyone will evolve.

But leading this way gives you the highest likelihood of success because it separates unwillingness from unreadiness.

This week, take inventory: who on your team might not be lazy but just afraid to get it wrong?