AI is proving to be a big challenge for leaders. Not simply because it is a new technology, but because it is just that: new. It is uncertain, complex, and changing by the month.
And when something is new, uncertain, and complex, we face a choice: Do we lean into the fog, or do we wait for it to lift?
Many leaders are waiting.
In my recent conversations with 11 HR, talent, and leadership-development professionals, one of the most consistent concerns was their leaders’ ability to navigate change, uncertainty, and complexity. Leaders are expected to provide clarity and direction while the ground keeps moving beneath them. AI is simply the most visible example right now. In a 2026 survey of more than 1,000 UK managers by the Chartered Management Institute, only 12% said they felt very confident leading AI-enabled teams.
But here is the uncomfortable truth: the biggest risk most leaders face with AI isn’t making a mistake. It’s waiting until they are sure they won’t.
What struggling with uncertainty looks like
Struggling with uncertainty and complexity rarely looks like panic. It usually looks reasonable. You may be struggling if:
- You wait for a complete plan before taking a first step.
- You keep asking for more information or approval when the real issue is discomfort.
- Decisions stall because no option feels certain enough.
- You let others go first so you can learn from their mistakes.
- You call yourself a “late adopter,” as if it were a personality trait rather than a choice.
- When things get uncertain, you fall back on what has worked before.
- Your team is waiting on answers from you, and you haven’t told them what you know and don’t know.
Few leaders see themselves in every item. But even one is worth paying attention to.
Leaders who navigate uncertainty well look different. They take a small step before the plan is complete. They are honest about what they don’t know. They treat a misstep as information, not a verdict. And they bring their team into the learning instead of making them wait for answers.
The difference between these two kinds of leaders may look small on any given day. Over time, it is enormous.
Why this matters more than it seems
Waiting feels safe. It rarely is. The cost of a misstep is easy to see. The cost of waiting is not, which is exactly why so many leaders underestimate it.
I saw this firsthand at Gallup. Around 2015, performance management was in upheaval. Organizations were throwing out annual reviews and ratings, the pendulum had swung hard, and no one was sure what should replace them. HR leaders were hungry for direction.
Gallup wanted to be the definitive voice on what came next. While I was there, I was asked to review the material. Honestly, it was some of the best thinking on performance management I had ever seen.
But amid all that uncertainty, the organization wanted it to be perfect before releasing it. It didn’t come out until well after I left. By then, the conversation had moved on, and years of excellent work produced little return.
The same thing happens with leaders and AI. When we wait, we lose more than time. We lose learning. The teams that advance fastest are often the ones that fail fastest: they try something, see what doesn’t work, and adjust. Every week we wait is a week of lessons we don’t get.
We also lose the ideas never tested and the capability our team never built. Our team learns to wait too. And our most curious people may go somewhere that lets them experiment.
Navigating uncertainty well is not a nice-to-have. In a world that keeps changing, it determines whether you and your team move with it or get left behind.
Why we wait
In my conversations with leaders, almost all of them tell me they are doing a good job, but not a great job, at navigating the uncertainty and complexity of their world. It is an area they want to improve, and it has become a central focus of my coaching.
When we dig in, we usually find two sources. Some of it is the environment. Direction from above is unclear, and some cultures punish mistakes more than they reward learning. Those conditions are real.
But much of it is internal. When we are focused on avoiding the bad, such as looking foolish, making a misstep, or being criticized, waiting feels safest. When we care more about growing, building, and making a positive impact, we become willing to step forward without a guarantee.
Here is the shift: clarity rarely comes before we move. It comes from moving. You don’t need all the answers. You need the confidence that you will find them as you go.
A simple place to start: the next time you notice yourself waiting, ask, “Am I trying to avoid a bad outcome, or create a good one?”
How I help leaders navigate uncertainty and complexity
If you want to improve your ability to navigate uncertainty and complexity, or your leaders’ ability, I would love to work with you.
To do this, I focus on Leadership Capability: the internal capacity from which leaders think, adapt, relate, decide, develop others, and operate under pressure and complexity. It is different from gaining knowledge and skills. Learning new AI tools adds to your cup (this is horizontal development). Leading through uncertainty requires expanding the size of the cup itself (this is vertical development).
In my work with leaders, we start by uncovering why they hold back when things are uncertain: the assumptions, fears, and protective patterns that make waiting feel safer than moving. Then we build three capacities:
- Pressure capacity: staying clear and open as uncertainty rises, rather than needing certainty before acting.
- Growth and adaptability: updating ourselves rather than protecting what has worked before.
- Complexity capacity: holding ambiguity without forcing a premature answer or retreating to no answer.
We do this through assessment, honest feedback, reflection, coaching, and practice on real challenges, so the change shows up when it matters most.
If any of this speaks to you, let’s connect. And if you are in HR or L&D and seeing these patterns across your leaders, let’s talk about how to help them lead into change rather than wait it out.
