The Axe Files, featuring David Axelrod, is a podcast distributed by CNN and produced at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. The author works for the podcast.

Mesa, Arizona (CNN) As the Chicago Cubs prepare to defend their hard-won World Series title, their charismatic leader has a message for his young champions: "Be uncomfortable."

"You really want to avoid the potential for complacency," Joe Maddon told David Axelrod on The Axe Files, a podcast from the University of Chicago's Institute of Politics and CNN. "If you're uncomfortable, growth continues. If you're comfortable, growth diminishes."

No team has won back-to-back championships since the New York Yankees captured their third straight title in 2000.

Maddon, 63, a master motivator whose quirky style of leadership helped lead a young Cubs team to the franchises' first championship in 108 years, acknowledges the challenge the Cubs face when the season that opens Sunday in St. Louis. In fact, he embraces it.

"You combat [pressure] by talking about it," Maddon explains. "You run toward the issue or the problem, you don't run away from it. The best way to disarm it is to do that."

Read More