Many organizations burn energy sanitizing the truth rather than solving it. This essay argues that the First Article of the Cologne Constitution, Et es wie et es (It is what it is), is not a phrase of resignation, but a critical leadership discipline. It proposes that admitting the raw, unpolished state of a project is the only valid starting point for progress. By swapping corporate euphemisms for "Tacheles" (straight talk), leaders stop negotiating with the facts and start acting on them. You cannot navigate a map you refuse to look at.