leaned into
Doubled down on
Leaned into means to embrace or commit to something fully, especially something challenging or uncomfortable.
The metaphor is physical—shifting your weight toward difficulty rather than away from it: She leaned into the criticism and used it to improve, The company leaned into the controversy.
The phrase became popular in business and self-help contexts around the 2010s, often suggesting deliberate acceptance of discomfort as a growth strategy.
- advocatedPublicly recommended or supported
- tiltedAngled from vertical
- embracedHeld someone warmly
- committedFirmly pledged or bound
- doubled downStrengthened a risky position
went all in · pursued · took the plunge · accepted · confronted · engaged · stepped up · invested · endorsed · adapted · championed · surrendered · aligned · supported · inclined · shifted · initiated · adjusted
leaned intoshied away from
Avoided through timidity
avoided · evaded · sidestepped · dodged · walked away from
leaned intopulled away
Moved back or departed
drew back · recoiled · flinched · shrank back · stepped back