Cameron HeroldFounder of the COO Alliance & Invest In Your Leaders Training

The best business lesson came from my Grandma.

29 Apr 2026 · 1 min

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1:09

In this segment from the YouTube video "The best business lesson came from my Grandma," Cameron Herold explains the timeless proverb "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" as a core leadership principle. He argues that the issues and people who speak up—whether employees, customers, or broken processes—signal where attention is needed. Leaders should respond quickly to these signals, creating a no‑blame environment where team members feel safe to surface problems. By focusing on fixing broken systems rather than blaming individuals, organizations can resolve issues faster, maintain smooth operations, and demonstrate that every voice matters.

Chapters

Well, here's a great little lesson from Grandma's Business Secrets, the book that Meredith and I put out recently. It's the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Here's the little diagram in the book. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. Let me talk to you about how that lesson applies to business. The squeaky wheel gets the grease is one of those grandma sayings that's spot on for running a company. In business, the people or issues that speak up get noticed, and they're the ones that get attention and solutions. If an employee raises a concern, a customer complains, or a system isn't working, It's usually a sign that something needs fixing, and as a leader, you've gotta pay attention to those squeaky wheels and address them quickly. Ignoring them just makes the noise louder and the problem bigger. Fixing what's broken not only keeps things running smoothly, but also shows your team and customers that their voices matter. You always want to create a no-blame environment internally so that people are super comfortable and excited to share the problems that they see. That environment is a safe place where you can fix the squeaky problems fast and no one is getting in trouble for them. And you also recognize that it's more about the missing or broken systems than the person causing the problem at all. So the squeaky wheel gets the grease.