In 1952, Florence Chadwick attempted to swim the chilly ocean waters between Catalina Island and the California shore. She swam through foggy weather and choppy seas for fifteen hours.
As her muscles began to cramp, her resolve was weakened. She begged to be taken from the water, but her mother, riding in a boat alongside, urged her not to give up. She kept trying but she grew exhausted and stopped swimming. Aids lifted her out of the water and into the boat. They paddled a few more minutes, the mist broke, and she discovered that the shore was less than a half mile away. “All I could see was the fog,” she explained at a news conference. “I think if I could have seen the shore, I would have made it.”
When we hear this story, it might be very easy to criticize Chadwick for giving up when she was so close to the shore. If only she had lasted! She really tried hard in this chilly water and made the effort.
Later, she said, “If I could have seen land, I might have made it.” She was not beaten by fatigue, by cold, or even sharks. She was beaten by the fog. Why? Because she couldn’t see her goal. And what happened to Chadwick happens also to us leaders. We don´t see the goal and give up. Often far too early.
Two months later, Chadwick made another attempt. The same thick fog set in, but this time was different. She succeeded in reaching the coastline. What made the difference? Chadwick said that she kept a mental image of the shoreline in her mind, which helped her ignore the thick fog, maintain her focus, and reach her goal.
On a scale 1 to 10 with ten being the highest, how much do you lead through fog right now? Where are you on your journey right now?
You might not face actual fog in your leadership but literal fog. A situation that prevents you from seeing or understanding clearly.
The COVID-19 crisis and many other current crises have caused disruption and disorientation for leaders in businesses, churches and NGOs. We’re all facing the “fog”. “Fog” is the lack of certainty about one’s capabilities, leadership and environment in trying conditions.
Leading through the fog means, I am trying to steer a ship when I cannot see what’s ahead of me, conditions are constantly shifting, and every choice I make feels dangerous. Leading through this uncertainty requires leaders to adapt their leadership style and approach. How can you lead when your vision is obscured? How can you achieve clarity when the situation is changing rapidly?
So how do we lead in uncertainty? Where do we turn so that we and our team can make our way forward through the fog?
For Chadwick to be successful on her second attempt, it was about keeping a mental image of the shoreline. It helped her to ignore the thick fog and maintain her focus.
What does it mean for us as leaders?
We need to understand that clarity is not certainty. We have to grow our capacity for clarity and let go of certainty. And we need to lean into our God given strengths, grow new strengths, and operate with a higher sense of clarity to navigate the uncertain and tumultuous future. Keeping that shoreline in our minds, knowing our goals we want to reach.
The underlying challenge is that in times of uncertainty, we crave the feeling of safety and comfort that certainty provides. Our brains and our bodies have a hard-wired desire for it. But there is no certainty in life and leadership. The fundamental reframe we offer is that the antidote for the negativity of uncertainty comes through lasting power of clarity through God´s guidance. It sticks, it lasts longer, and it fortifies everything we do as leaders.