The Unifying Moment

Over the course of my career, I have been present many times when a group of people moved from just being a group to an actual team. This unifying moment is both mystical, and integrative. The mystical element is witnessing the individual and collective transformation that takes place. The integrative element is experiencing the deep and profound shift in awareness and understanding that brings these people together. For when a unifying moment happens, a sense of wholeness emerges out of the previous separate pieces. 

As an executive coach, I am intrigued by two questions about this special moment: What were the pre-conditions for a unifying moment to take place? And what actually happened when a unifying moment was experienced?

First, I believe the pre-conditions involve two important words, namely vulnerability and understanding. In the beginning, some people focus on personal vulnerability and personal understanding. But after many hours of reflection on this subject, I believe the shift happened when all involved moved from the personal level to a shared level of vulnerability and understanding. It starts with an individual choice, but becomes transformational when we collectively choose the path of being open to other perspectives, and other, and different life experiences. In essence, we move from an I am the focus perspective to a we are the focus perspective. 

Second, when the unifying moment actually happened, it was greater than a simple thought process. Instead, it was the emergence of a specific feeling, namely the union of an intra-connection and inter-connection. At that moment, there was a recognition that we are all inter-connected, and that these connections are dynamic and expansive. This is what generates the aha moment and a feeling of awe. 

I believe that one element of this transformation from a group to a team happens when those gathered create and maintain a safe, relational spaces for sharing. In particular, those gathered move from having a safe, transactional space, which focuses on getting more things done faster, to building a safe, relational space, where being connected, authentic, and respectful matters most. This profound, but subtle shift makes a major difference over time, because all involved recognize that there will always be more things to get done, and that the only constant is whether or not the people we are doing all this work with are people we trust. 

From a leadership perspective, this requires an individual to be very conscious of what they are thinking and saying. Self-awareness is the first step toward a mystical and integrative, unifying moment. But the challenge to engage in this level of work requires one to engage in routine and on-going reflection, i.e. creating an intra-connection before engaging in an inter-connection. 

People like this idea in theory, but in actuality, most share in private that they have no idea how to actually do reflection. I think the problem with reflection, the precursor to self-awareness and ultimately group awareness, is that it is the convergence of a variety of choices. First, most people don’t know how to pause in their overly busy lives in order to reflect. Second, even if they do pause, they don’t know what to do in the time and space created in order to actually reflect. 

But, I think the underlying problem is that most people don’t consider reflection, and the resulting self-awareness that comes from it, as a valuable or worthwhile use of their time. Furthermore, they do not see it as a priority worth investing in given the scope and magnitude of the problems before them. Thus, it gets pushed to the back burner, and never actually happens. 

This choice reflects their continual desire to assert control and order into their lives, plus a touch of predictability. The thought of not working to solve the immediate problems before them does not make sense given the pressure they are feeling. Furthermore, they believe that if they did pause and reflect, it would only result in the generation of more problems. From this perspective, time is the problem, and working harder and faster is the solution. 

However, I believe that the choice to reflect and to gain greater self-awareness is a important choice. As the second Law of Thermodynamics reminds us: As activity lessens, order increases. When we choose to pause and step back from the pressing demands of the moment, we create the opportunity to gain perspective, and a more holistic understanding of what is happening around us, and within us. As Kevin Cashman notes, “Pausing for self-awareness is like unlocking the doors to a series of rooms. While reflective pause is the key to unlocking self-awareness, self-awareness in turn opens the doorways to authenticity, character, and purpose.” And all of this helps a leader become a better leader, and all of this helps them engage with others in the journey from being a group to an actual team. 

Once there is an understanding of the role and importance of creating time to pause and reflect, I have noticed that those who do it very well engage in solo reflection, namely time alone to ponder an idea, problem, or emerging situation, but they also engage in reflection through in-depth dialogue and sharing with others like a coach or mentor. From personal and professional experience, this kind of reflection and dialogue has generated some of my most important insights, namely the person or people I am visiting with will share something I was not even thinking of, or aware of. At the exact same time, these people often ask a question that I have never considered exploring. Usually, it is the combination of the two that shifts my perception of what is happening and helps me move from the I am the focus perspective to a we are the focus perspective. 

Right now, we need more groups to become actual teams, and we need our current teams to become betters teams, i.e. high-performance teams. And the one thing, we can all do today to move individually and collectively in that direction is to listen better to our internal dialogue, and to listen better to the external dialogues that happening all around us. As President Calvin Coolidge once said, “No man [or woman] has ever listened himself [or herself] out of a job.” For when we make this choice, we discover that our intra-connections create the foundation for our inter-connections with others. And then, the potential for a mystical and integrative, unifying moment appears, and we discover wholeness where previously there had just been an assortment of separate pieces. 

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change

Now Is The Time To Slow Down And Reflect

“Thinking is the place where intelligent actions begin,” writes Margaret Wheatley. “We pause long enough to look more carefully at a situation, to see more of its character, to think about why it’s happening, to notice how it’s affecting us and others.”

As Kevin Cashman reminds us in his book, The Pause Principle: Step Back to Lead Forward (Berrett-Koehler, 2012), “All too often, we allow ourselves to be carried away by our busy-ness. We are too hyperactive, too reactive to even notice the hidden value-creating dynamics waiting just under the surface within us and around us. Tethered to our smartphones, we are too caught up and distracted to take the time necessary to sort through complexity or to locate submerged purpose. In our urgent rush to get ‘there,’ we are going everywhere but being nowhere. Far too busy managing with transitive speed, we rarely step back to lead with transformative significance.” When I pause, think deeply, and reflect on all that is happening in our world, and all that people are sharing with me, some interesting trends surface. 

First, we are witnessing on-going periods of rapid intensification with little to no level of adequate monitoring or preparation for the impact of rapid intensification. This term, rapid intensification, is used to describe how hurricanes develop in a short period of time, e.g. the weather was fine and then it changed quickly overnight, which resulted in the development of a hurricane. Recognizing this pattern, weather scientists monitor for the conditions that will result in rapid intensification, and, if they see it starting to happen, they then make specific recommendations as to safety, etc. before a full blown hurricane happens. 

Given current events taking place in a wide diversity of organizations, and in the broader world, the conditions for rapid intensification are surfacing. Therefore, leaders need to monitor these conditions quite closely. Then, if they do surface, they need to have a plan in place for how to respond in order to handle the arrival of a metaphorical hurricane. 

Second, as I noted last week in this blog, we are witnessing a rising tide of exhausted engagement with people only staying in their jobs for the potential bonus they may receive in the near future. This, in conjunction with a decline in the effectiveness of their personal coping strategies, makes work, which, at one point, was meaningful and interesting, just a daily worthless marathon to be endured. 

This level of exhaustion is compounded by a decline in teams becoming better and stronger at what they do on a daily basis. Instead, many teams are de-evolving into dysfunctional teams, or single leader work groups, who are struggling to keep up with the complex technical problems and adaptive challenges that are taking place operationally each day. And team members know that their team is not doing well. Furthermore, these same team players believe they are all experiencing the Red Queen Principle, namely they are running faster and faster to just stay in the same place.

Third, we are witnessing the impact of a continued decline in effective coaching, especially in the area of creating safe spaces to share, reflect, and think through difficult issues and problems. Most people experience coaching as a time where the leader as coach says “Tell me your problems so I can fix them.” This typically results is a blame and shame form of coaching that feels neither safe or productive. 

On the other hand, experienced leaders, who coach well, focus on helping their direct reports learn new skills and/or gain new insights about how to manage or lead through the difficult problems they encounter. The goal of this way of coaching is to build trust in the relationship, and capacity within the skill set and mind set of the individual they are coaching. But the foundation of exceptional coaching begins with the creation of safe spaces so all involved can share, reflect, and think through difficult issues and problems.

Fourth, we are are witnessing an epidemic of strategic blindness, namely a total lack of understanding that the operational and strategic choices being made today are creating the future, and that the problems today reflect poor choices and solutions made in the past. I think this problem is happening now because more and more people do not have an in-depth understanding of the history of the company, and in particular the past strategic choices that were made. 

Therefore, I think new employee orientation should include a half day or full day workshop, depending on the age of the company, on the history of the company, starting with the founding straight through to present day operations. In particular, I would focus on explaining the choices made within the last three to four strategic plans, and how these past choices created current systems, structure, and culture within the company. Then, all involved will grasp that the choices we are making today will create the future five to seven years from now. Understanding and perspective are mission critical to making wise choices at this time period. 

Given the emergence of these four trends, I am reminded of a line that Shakespeare wrote in his play called Hamlet: “We know what we are, but not what we may be.” Recognizing the short and long term impact and precedence these trends are having and will have, I believe we need to turn to the writings of Margaret Wheatley where she advocates for “seeking coherence at the core,” namely the creation of a strong identity within a person or group based on a shared purpose, especially within the context of a community at work and at home.

On the surface, the idea of coherence at the core seems very abstract. Yet, Martine Haas and Mark Mortensen in their article called “The Secrets of Great Teamwork” (Harvard Business Review, June 2016) do not see this concept as abstract. Using teamwork as a foundation for building a shared identity and purpose, they write: “Today’s teams are different from the teams of the past: They’re far more diverse, dispersed, digital, and dynamic (with frequent changes in membership).” Then, they explain that the foundation for success involves four different elements. First, there needs to be a compelling direction, i.e. “People have to care about achieving a goal.” Second, there needs to be a strong structure, i.e. “Every individual doesn’t have to possess superlative technical and social skills, but the team overall needs a healthy dose of both.” Third, there needs to be a supportive context, i.e. the right resources, information, and training. Finally, there needs to be a shared mindset. They explain this last one in the following manner: “Distance and diversity, as well as digital communication and changing membership, make them [teams] especially prone to the problems of ‘us versus them’ thinking and incomplete information…. The solution to both is developing a shared mindset among team members - something team leaders can do by fostering a common identity and common understanding.” And given current events and challenges, the above four elements related to teamwork are vital to success, especially the fourth element. They also are a strong foundation for how to move forward given the aforementioned trends. 

Right now, we need to stay alert to what is happening in the world around us, both near and far, and then adapt as needed. At the same time, we need to make sure that every response and adaptation we choose strengthens the teams and community within which we live. All of this will require discipline, dedication, and a healthy sense of community at work and at home. For this is where intelligent action begins. 

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change

When Dealing With Exhausted Engagement

Recently, when visiting with a wide diversity of team leaders, I am noticing a rising tide of exhausted engagement. Often, this is referred to as engagement fatigue or passion burnout. It occurs when employees are highly engaged, passionate, dedicated, and committed, yet they are experiencing high levels of burnout. It often affects high-performing individuals who are deeply invested in their work, resulting in a dangerous paradox of being highly motivated yet simultaneously psychologically exhausted due to prolonged and excessive demands for participation, and consultation related to complex, and often protracted issues. The outcome of this situation is that these key individuals are likely to leave the organization, because they can not see a sustainable path forward. 

This is all deeply troubling for their colleagues and for people in senior leadership positions. Everyone understands that teamwork and collaboration are vital to mission success. They also know that exhausted engagement can become malignant if not treated at an early stage, causing a cascading exodus of highly qualified and committed team leaders. 

So, what can we all do to deal with exhausted engagement?

I think the initial solution happens at three different levels. First, acknowledge that this is happening, and that it is real. Denial is not a coping strategy, or a long term solution. Second, begin with the end in mind. The desired outcome of this situation is that people and the teams are better able to deal with the current tsunami of prolonged and excessive demands, and can solve the complex, and often protracted issues and problems before them. Third, we want our team leaders to stay engaged, but in a manner that leads to less fatigue or burnout. In essence, we want improved teamwork in the midst of all that is taking place.  

So, in the beginning, we need to recognize that if we want to create stronger teams and improved teamwork, we, first and foremost, must become better team players. Yet, when this becomes clear to us, I am reminded of something that Brené Brown wrote about in her book, Strong Ground: The Lessons Of Daring Leadership, The Tenacity Of Paradox, and The Wisdom Of The Human Spirit (Random House, 2025): “What you’re trying to achieve will require a deep, broad, and disciplined commitment to individual change, team change, and systems change.” If it only took change on one level, I think most people would have moved through their exhausted engagement and into a new stage of leading, living, and working. However, this is rarely the case because this kind of change needs to happen on so many different levels. 

Therefore, recognizing this insight, I believe we need to engage in a discovery process before we move to solving the problem. As Albert Einstein is quoted as having said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem, I’d spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and 5 minutes thinking about solutions.” 

Einstein’s approach to problem-solving is focused on creating an in-depth and holistic understanding of what is taking place at the operational and strategic levels within the company. For when we dedicate time to defining the core technical problems and adaptive challenges that are taking place, then we can recognize that past solutions may be causing current problems at the individual, team, and/or systems levels within the company.  

This week, when we question whether or not we can continue, even when the work is meaningful to us, we need to pause, reflect, and ask new and different questions in order to create solutions that result in a deep, broad, and disciplined commitment to change.

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change

The Importance of Self-Compassion

Living through hard times often hurts people. And, as we all know, hurting people can, often hurt the people around them. This happens because these individuals are experiencing varies levels of emotional pain, conflict, and uncertainty in their lives. Therefore, consciously or unconsciously, they project this pain onto others. FYI: Entitled and uncaring people can also hurt people whether or not there are hard times. 

Recently, I have noticed that many people, especially those in leadership positions, are not just projecting their pain outwardly, they also are directing their pain inwardly. In particular, they are constantly analyzing their behaviors, actions, and words, and they are feeling that they are not measuring up to the expectations they hold of themselves. This internalized self-criticism is resulting in increased anxiety, worry, and massive amounts of negative self-talk. Rather than turning self-analysis into a positive and constructive growth mindset, this excessive self-criticism is generating internal toxicity, and creating a lot of external toxicity too. In short, many leaders feel like a failure given what is happening at work, and at home. 

Therefore, I believe it is time to move from self-criticism to mindful self-compassion. As Christopher Willard, PsyD explains, “Mindful self-compassion is the practice of recognizing and naming our experience of suffering. By connecting our suffering to the rest of humanity, we also recognize it as suffering and extend kindness to ourselves. Christopher Germer [a clinical psychologist] says we practice self-compassion not to feel better, but simply because we feel bad.”

Part of being self-compassionate is to understand and embrace three key concepts. First, we must manage our energy more than our time. “Work when there is work to do. Rest when you are tired,” writes Susan McHenry. “One thing done in peace will most likely be better than ten things done in panic…. I am not a hero if I deny rest; I am only tired.” This means we must give ourselves permission to rest, and not feel guilty when we do this. There is a big difference between doing things that burn us out, and doing things when we are burned out. 

Second, we must listen more to our internal dialogue, and then create time and space to process it with qualified professionals who can offer perspectives, coping strategies, and insights. “It is so simple and yet so brave to say that we are hurt when we are hurt, that we are sad when we are sad, that we are scared when we are scared,” writes the  poet Mark Nepo. “In very direct and daily ways, this energy of realness … changes situations because the immediate expression of our truth releases light and warmth that influences the life we are a part of. This is the way our spirit shines.”

Third, we must role model integrity in all we do as leaders. This choice translates into being a person who is kind, thoughtful, and generous. As Margaret Wheatley in her book, Restoring Sanity ( Berrett-Koehler, 2024), reminds us: “We do not withdraw. We are not seeking self-protection. We commit to creating a community where generosity, creativity, and kindness are the norm - what we expect from each other and easily offer in return.” This choice builds the foundation for a network of support at work, and at home. When we offer ourselves grace along the way, we map out new ways of coping and new ways of engaging with others. 

Nevertheless, there are days when we need to be honest with ourselves about what we can and can not handle at this time period. We also need to be honest with ourselves and recognize that seeking out help when we are struggling is not a sign of weakness. Instead, it is an important first step in owning our pain, and then giving ourselves some grace and self-compassion as we work through it. As a non-profit CEO shared with Margaret Wheatley, “Every day I have to make a choice not to give up.” Offering ourselves some self-compassion is an important part of this choice. 

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change

The Future Is Now

Recently, I have been reflecting on this line from the Tao Te Ching, a 4th-6th century BC Chinese guide to the art of living: 

“See simplicity in the complicated. Achieve greatness in little things.” 

In a world filled with complexity, it is hard to find, or see simplicity. Instead, we are surround by people and institutions moving through waves of fragmentation, uncertainty, and volatility. All of which are generating confusion and frustration rather than vision or agility. For many, this all translates into meaningless work, economic uncertainty, and an overall mental health pandemic. In short, people are worn to the core, and then some. 

Nevertheless, the idea of seeing simplicity and achieving greatness is still a worthwhile goal. The challenge before us as leaders is simple: What are the little things that we need to focus on right now in order to achieve greatness and simplicity when we are surrounded by complexity? I think the answer can be found in three specific areas.

First, we need to focus on mission clarity. As Brené Brown in her book, Strong Ground: The Lessons Of Daring Leadership, The Tenacity Of Paradox, and The Wisdom Of The Human Spirit (Random House, 2025), writes: “What’s mission critical? Mission clarity.” She later notes, “… I associate commitment with leadership. So I want committed people, not compliant people.” 

Years ago, I remember working with a CEO whose team was struggling to execute their strategic plan. He shared with me that for his team strategic clarity equaled operational compliance. As Brown pointed out, “They worked from commitment, not to compliance.” I smiled when I read this, because I had seen it in action, and had witnessed the impact of this choice.  

However, over the last year, I have heard many leaders say “We need to stay the course.” This is a good choice, if as a leader, a team, and the organization as a whole, we are sure that we are on the correct course. I wish more leaders at this time period were to talk more about staying on mission more than staying on course. Purpose and commitment are always the foundation and the pathway to achieving great things. 

Second, we need to focus on decision-making. As Amy Webb, American futurist, author and founder/CEO of the Future Today Strategy Group, who is widely recognize for her work in transforming the practice of strategic foresight into a rigorous, data-driven discipline, writes: “In a world that has moved beyond traditional boundaries, the goal isn’t to get the future ‘right’ - it’s to get your decisions right in the present.” 

In her short statement, there are many deep insights. There are two that instantly jump out to me. First, the decisions we made in the past created the reality we are experiencing today. Second, the decisions we are making today will directly impact our reality in the future. Therefore, we need to be very mindful of what decisions we are making right now, and how we are making those decisions.

For me, decision making is a four step process: preparing to make a decision, making a decision, executing a decision, and evaluating the outcome or results from the decision that was made. While the decision may be difficult to make due to incomplete data, or unrealistic expectations and/or time lines, the simplicity within the complicated is found when we realize that the four step process is as important as the making of the decision itself. If we follow the process and all of the nuances within each step, then the decision-making process becomes the source of greatness, the constant in the midst of social and economic turbulence. From my perspective, we need to teach the decision-making process in order to achieve more greatness in the present moment. 

Third, we need to focus on the health of our strategic and operational networks. Again, I return to the writing of Amy Webb who wrote: “Organizations will need to navigate complex partnership networks while maintaining their competitive advantage.” Herminia Ibarra in her book, Act Like A Leader, Think Like A Leader (Harvard Business Review Press, 2015), writes about the importance of leaders have operational, personal, and strategic networks. As she explains, “The first helps you manage current internal responsibilities, the second boosts personal development, and the third focuses on new business directions and the stakeholders you must get on board to pursue these directions.” She notes that the strategic network “is made up of relationships that help you to envision the future, sell your ideas, and get the information and resources you need to exploit these ideas…. A good strategic network gives you connective advantage: the ability to marshal information, support, or other resources from one of your networks to obtain results in another.” Editors, Frances Hesselbein and Marshall Goldsmith in their book, The Organization of the Future 2: Visions, Strategies and Insights on Managing in a New Era (Jossey-Bass, 2009), write that the goal of your network is to build strategic unity, namely “the ability to create a shared point of view and common behaviors in an increasingly diverse work setting.” 

From my perspective, when we build and maintain the aforementioned three networks, we are able to navigate the challenges before us because these networks help us be more competent, i.e. able to do the work, and committed, i.e. willing to do the work and better able to find the meaning and purpose within the work. If we seek to see simplicity in the complicated, and achieve greatness in little things, the best place to start is to create a future where we are more mindful in the present. And, I know nothing better to help us be more mindful than participating with an active and diverse network of people. 

The world we live in is getting more interconnected, faster, and chaotic. Still, as leaders, we can focus on improving mission clarity, decision-making and the decision-making process, and the health of our strategic and operational networks. While these seem like such little things, they are, nevertheless, a way to achieve greatness and simplicity when surrounded by complexity. And right now, we need all involved to do these three things very well. 

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change

Everything Changes - part #2

The Importance Of Dialogues And Multilogues

The other thing leaders need to understand is that cell phones and other forms of technology can result in being constantly distracted from the present moment, and from the important work of making connections with people. As Margaret Wheatley points out, “Only use processes that bring people together in mutual respect. No othering or distancing from one another. We start and end as equals…. Conversations is the technology. Curiosity, vulnerability, mutual respect give it power.” 

From my professional experiences of working with great leaders, I have witnessed that being fully present with others means creating quality time for sharing, listening, and learning, which creates a deeper level of understanding, knowledge, and perspective. It also provides us with the opportunity to be mindfully evolving our own capacity to lead and serve others. 

Yet, for this to happen on an on-going basis, we need to engage in dialogues and multilogues on a routine basis. The word dialogue comes the Greek language meaning dia through and logus word. It is a conversation between two people, focusing on the exchange of words and ideas. I have often seen this done well during regular coaching and check-in sessions. 

Multilogue, on the other hand, is a conversation involving three or more participants, often characterized as many-to-many rather than a two-person dialogue. It allows for multiple and diverse voices and perspectives to be heard, and it is a safe space for co-creation and in-depth collaboration. While a dialogue is often between two people, a multilogue, or sometimes called a polylogue, describes a larger group interaction, which, over time, can build ownership and a strategic level mindset. I have often seen this done well during regular strategic reviews and during in-depth strategic planning. 

When I think about dialogues and multilogues, I have to remember that I was raised in a print culture, i.e. books, newspapers, articles, etc., with a general societal focus on continuity, uniformity, and repeatability. I even remember the Dewy Decimal System and using the card catalog at the local library. However, we now live in a time period of AI, Chat GPT, algorithms, and internet searches, all of which have the potential to create discontinuity, ambiguity, and multiple networks of interactions in order to find key information, develop a plan, or quickly adapt a plan that is already being executed. 

Given this wide diversity of life experiences within the current workforce, the best leaders, who recognize that everything changes over time, do not focus on one of the aforementioned differences as being good and the other as being bad or old fashion. Instead, they recognize that the world of effective leadership is built on working within an interconnected whole rather than just defining it as a collection of entities, teams, or people. The combination of dialogues and multilogues creates an interconnected whole with a direct connection to the strategic nexus, namely the sum of mission, vision and core values plus the current strategic plan. 

The Challenge of Armor

Still, when leaders approach people and change from a binary perspective, namely done vs not done, they invariably end up armoring up to protect themself from others. They do this, because they frame resistance and the feeling of things being chaotic as a problem rather than as a normal part of the overall change process. Brené Brown in her book, Strong Ground: The Lessons Of Daring Leadership, The Tenacity Of Paradox, and The Wisdom Of The Human Spirit (Random House, 2025), writes “The big learning from the original research and substantiated by every study we’ve done since is that the real barrier to daring leadership is armor - the thoughts, emotions, and behaviors that we use to protect ourselves when weren’t willing and able to rumble with vulnerability.” Then, with their armor on as form of self-protection, they are ready to do battle with everyone and every thing around them. The result is that kindness, respect, compassion, and collaboration fall by the wayside in one’s expectations and efforts to generate perfect levels of control, order, and predictability. 

Nevertheless, I can hear executive coaches advising clients to take off their armor in order to be more effective. Yet, taking off this amor can feel chaotic if not even a crisis for many leaders. They put on the armor, consciously or unconsciously, because they did not feel safe. They also put it on, because, on one level, they did have the tools or the mindset to “rumble with vulnerability.” For them, the armor is the solution to a problem, and the problem is fear. As Brené Brown notes, “At the heart of daring leadership is a deeply human truth that is rarely acknowledged, especially at work: Courage and fear are not mutually exclusive. Most of us feel brave and afraid at the exact same time. Sometimes all day long.”

Therefore, we need to create the conditions for people to feel safe at the individual and group or team levels. This involves building trust, and thoughtful connections. We also need to provide them with the tools and perspective to deal with fear, vulnerability, and unpredictability. Otherwise, the choice will be put on armor, and focus on controlling everything and everyone around us. 

There also is one more thing we need to do. As James Kouzes and Barry Posner in their book, A Leader’s Legacy (Jossey-Bass, 2006), explain, “Speaking of the truth, for each individual, the most important leader in any organization is not the CEO, or the head honcho; it’s the leader we see most often, the one we turn to when we need guidance and support.” They then note, the “... single best predictor of career success is the relationship they had with their very first supervisor…. The leaders who have the most influence on us are those who are closest to us.” 

And when we armor up, and then engage with others, we are not going to be seen as someone who can offer guidance and support. We also will not be seen as someone who cares and understands the challenges of working within complexity. In short, our lack of vulnerability will be framed as a barrier rather than an asset. 

So, in order to help leaders take off their armor and become the kind of people who others are willing to follow, Kouzes and Posner remind us that “leadership development is first and foremost self-development.” And when this in-depth self-development process takes place, Kouzes and Posner write, “Leadership is courage in action…. Leadership is a humbling experience…. When we choose to lead every day, we choose to serve. Leading is not about what we gain from others but what others gain from us.” And serving others is vital to dealing with the convergence of complexity and rapid intensification. 

Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

“It’s really easy to complicate your life,” writes Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia. “It’s a lot harder to simplify it.” Nevertheless, that is exactly what we need to do at this time period. 

Currently, we live in a world where multiple factors are causing everything to feel and be  chaotic. While we wish this could all change overnight, leaders understand that this is a pipe dream rather than the reality within which they work and live. They also understand that in order for us to be effective, and, at times, efficient, we need to accept the fact that everything changes. And some days, these changes are adaptive and other days they are evolutionary. But in the end, change is the constant in the world of leadership. 

Therefore, when things feel chaotic and are chaotic, we must change our inscape in order to better lead within the landscape of our lives. We must prepare for, and recognize the conditions that generate rapid intensification. We must create the time and space for more dialogues and multilogues in order to create greater levels of clarity, commitment, and engagement. We also must recognize that the armor we put on and wear, consciously or unconsciously, does not always serve us well or generate respectful and meaningful connections with others. 

If our goal in the midst of all this change is to respond rather than to react, and to build safe and trusting work environments, where all involved can create solutions which are owned and understood by the people who have to execute them, then we must calm our minds and be fully present to people around us. For when we do this, something important happens. As Joey Reiman, professor at Emory’s Business School, wrote: “If you can change your mind, you can change the world.” And that is what we are trying to do while everything changes all around us. 

© Geery Howe 2026

Geery Howe, M.A. Executive Coach in Leadership, Strategic Planning, and Organizational Change