Fish are the Last to Discover Water

It is one of those simple ideas that carries more weight the longer you sit with it. A fish lives its entire life surrounded by water, dependent on it for survival, yet completely unaware of its presence. Only when it is removed does the reality of water become clear.

The same thing happens to us, especially inside organizations.

We adapt quickly to our environment. Norms become invisible. Systems become unquestioned. Over time, what once stood out fades into the background. What was once appreciated becomes expected, and eventually it is taken for granted.

This is the law of familiarity.

Spend enough time inside any organization and two things begin to happen. First, people lose perspective on how things really work. Practices that might be inefficient, outdated, or frustrating become “just the way we do things.” No one questions them, not because they are effective, but because they are familiar. The longer those patterns exist, the more normal they feel.

Second, people lose appreciation for what they have. Benefits, flexibility, stability, and culture, all the things that might stand out to an outsider, become invisible to those who experience them every day.

I have seen both sides of this.

In some organizations, long-tenured employees have no idea how poorly certain systems function. Communication gaps, unnecessary bureaucracy, or outdated processes persist simply because no one remembers an alternative. The water has always been there, so no one questions it.

In other organizations, especially in government settings, employees become so accustomed to predictable hours, strong benefits, reliable pay, and job stability that they stop recognizing their value. What would be seen as exceptional elsewhere feels ordinary here.

Then someone new walks in.

Suddenly, everything is obvious again. The new employee notices the inefficiencies right away. They ask questions no one else is asking. They see the friction points. At the same time, they are often blown away by the positives, the benefits, the culture, and the stability that others barely acknowledge anymore.

That contrast is revealing. It shows us that reality has not changed, only our awareness of it has.

For leaders, this creates both a risk and an opportunity.

The risk is complacency. When familiarity goes unchecked, organizations drift. Inefficiencies become embedded. Gratitude fades. Teams stop improving not because they lack capability, but because they lack perspective.

The opportunity is awareness.

Great leaders find ways to help people see the water again. They invite fresh eyes and actually listen to them. They rotate roles or responsibilities to break patterns. They ask simple but powerful questions like, “If we were starting from scratch, would we design it this way?” They create moments of reflection that reconnect people to what is working, not just what is broken.

Just as importantly, they remind their teams of what is worth appreciating. Appreciation is not automatic. It is intentional.

The best cultures are not the ones with the most perks or the most polished systems. They are the ones where people remain aware. Aware of what is working. Aware of what needs to change. And aware that both can be true at the same time.

The fish may not realize it is in water, but leaders do not have that luxury. Their job is to help others see clearly before something valuable disappears or something broken becomes permanent.

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