Success doesn’t live on the well-worn path. It thrives on the edges, where people dare to challenge the norm, take risks, and do things differently. This is the magic of positive deviance—finding extraordinary solutions by leaning into unconventional methods that break the mold.

Positive deviance isn’t about being radical; it’s about being resourceful.

It’s about recognizing what’s already working in specific pockets of your world and asking, “How can we learn from this?” These aren’t top-down mandates or cookie-cutter fixes. They’re human, innovative, and context-specific solutions born from curiosity and courage; the courage to be different.

And here’s the thing: the people driving these successes don’t have extra resources or better circumstances. They’re working with the same tools, the same limitations, but thinking differently. By studying their approaches, we uncover insights that transform how we lead, solve problems, and create impact.

What makes positive deviance so exciting is its accessibility.

Because It’s not about experts coming in to save the day—it’s about uncovering brilliance that’s already within our team, organization, or community. It’s inclusive, collaborative, and, frankly, refreshing in a world that loves to complicate success.

When you start looking for these outliers, you’ll notice something incredible: they don’t just solve problems; they redefine what’s possible. They create a ripple effect of innovation, energy and hope that spreads throughout the system.

The challenge for us as leaders is to stop and take notice.

To not just focus on fixing what’s broken but to seek out what’s thriving in unexpected ways. To ask ourselves, “Who’s doing things differently, and what can I learn from them?” Because the truth is, the answers to our biggest challenges often already exist. We just need to see them, celebrate them, and scale them.

That’s the power of leading with positive deviance.