Stephen ScogginsFounder - CEO at Lion - Lamb Solutions

“Their Job Is To Live In That Dark Place For You” | Rick Jordan

23 Oct 2026 · 1 min

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In this reflective monologue, Rick Jordan discusses a core leadership principle: the necessity of appointing individuals whose specific role is to occupy the 'dark place'—the uncomfortable, hard‑decision‑making and enforcement side of running an organization. He explains that while leaders make decisions and aim to create safe environments, they must also delegate the execution of those decisions, especially when safety is compromised. Jordan admits his own shortcoming in failing to place such people, drawing a parallel to business contexts where leaders must confront unsafe conditions and rely on designated enforcers to maintain safety. The overall message emphasizes the tension between the desire to help and the responsibility to enforce difficult choices, highlighting personal accountability in leadership.

Chapters

So this isn't my wisdom. This is his, man. Yeah. There's people that you have to put into place that their job is to live in that dark place for you. Even though it's your decision, they're the ones that execute on that decision. And the one thing I didn't do is I didn't put those people in place. Same with business, man, is what I found out. It's like there's decisions that you need to make that you just don't want to. I want to help people. I want to be someone who can build a safe place for them. What happens when it becomes unsafe? You're the person in that role that's supposed to handle the lack of safety. As much as you're the person who's supposed to help create that safety. Yeah.