On Memorial Day, my son and his family came over for the afternoon. It was a beautiful day, very low humidity for South Georgia and we had a full grill of various protein options planned along with swimming in the pool. My 6 year-old grandson Liam is a fish and is very comfortable in the water. His 3 year-old sister Cora, not so much. In fact, just a few weeks ago, I was in the pool with both of them and while I was doing something with Liam, Cora slipped out of her float and was free swimming (or more accurately, free sinking). My wife alertly noticed and quickly got her out of the pool. But Cora was shaken and not all that interested in a return to the pool.
But learning to swim is not an optional activity. It is a life skill, something that every person must learn and should learn early. So on this day, I was already in the pool with Liam and I encouraged Cora to get into the pool with me. She resisted. I insisted. She was really struggling with her intention to not get into the pool with the requirement to obey her Papa. Without raising my voice, I did not give Cora the option to not comply. To her mother’s credit, she didn’t say anything or intervene. 
Finally, literally kicking and whining, I got her in my arms and into the pool. She calmed down and we began to move around the pool. She laughed as we played together in the water. After a couple of minutes, I let her get out of the pool. Then 10 minutes later, I again asked her to come and swim with me. Once again, she resisted, but ultimately I forced her into the pool and she had a great time.
By the end of our pool session, she was holding on to a bar with floats attached to the end, kicking her feet like crazy and I was barely holding on to her at all. Now this is just one session out of many that will occur this summer. My wife will definitely have Cora swimming before the summer is over. But it was an important first step. As managers and supervisors, sometimes we need to pull our reports into the deep water, perhaps kicking and whining. We don’t need to be cruel (Note: I did not throw Cora in the pool or attempt to scare her). But there are times and situations where we need to professionally insist that certain behavior is exhibited. Find creative ways to do so if you must, but don’t let your people’s hesitation to expand their boundaries stop you from assisting their professional growth.