Ambiguity could be good but might not be. That's purposely ambiguous. It reminds me of something a fraternity brother of mine once said to another brother:
"John, you're a nice guy, but you're a little wishy-washy."
"No I'm not," said John, "well, maybe a little..."
Yeah. And maybe a lot.
Ambiguity drives me crazy. People who don't commit for whatever reason cause me a kind of anxiety. There may not be much that I can do about it, but I do my best to clarify what the heck is going on.
Leaders must clarify. We live with ambiguity -- we can't always know how things will turn out. Not everything is even in our control. So things can get fuzzy around the edges. In the mean time, there are important things that we can clarify:
- who we are
- what our values are and mean
- what is our mission and vision
- our most important goals
- our character
Once we have a firm, clear understanding of those five important things, any ambiguity simply exists at the mercy of any of those five. We'll know when we know, but in the mean time, clarify as much as possible.
People will resist your efforts to get clear. Get clear anyway. People will look for wishy-washy options. Reduce the gray areas and focus on what is most important. You might change your mind, but you likely won't change my mission.
How clear are you about what is important to you?
-- Doug Smith
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