As human beings, we are not wired to embrace uncertainty. We like clear answers, defined outcomes and a well-articulated path to get there. The challenge is that real life doesn’t work that way. Our most important projects and changes are often rife with uncertainty. And forcing the issue and making snap decisions often does more harm than good. If we want to navigate the unknown well, we need to know the thinking styles that will best get us there.

Being successful as a sponsor requires being attentive. We need to show up, pay attention and provide active support. Where this doesn’t happen, projects fail. Sadly, every once in a while, projects fail anyway. The challenge for sponsors is determining what to do next.

I’ve been exploring liminality and in-between spaces in a few posts. And while the structure is simple, and the ideas it offers are profound and meaningful, actual living in and transitioning through liminal spaces is often anything but clear, ordered or certain. There can be a great deal of fuzziness, frustration and even fear. I thought it would be helpful to explore what it’s like to actually live in the in-between spaces.

Change is a process. And while it is a difficult one, it doesn’t need to be quite so painful and messy as what we often experience. Better navigating change requires recognizing that most of the transition happens in the space between what was and what will become. We need to let go, and be guided through that transition. That requires rethinking some of what we know and believe about projects and change.

Some of our hardest questions are hard simply because the situation is complex and the possible outcomes are fuzzy and abstract. Knowing how to make a good decision, and how to sustain one, is hard. But it doesn’t have to be. There is a way to be able to sort through the fuzziness and get to the heart of what matters.

I’m a process geek. You might safely assume, then, that I would be a fan of “best practices.” You would be very wrong. Best practices generally aren’t. Unlike the promised intent, there is usually more than one best way to proceed in a given situation. We ignore that at our peril.

We want to do good work. We aspire to do amazing, transcendent work. That doesn’t happen very often. When it does happen, it is very good indeed. What is critical is recognizing what allows us to actually do it.

Planning is supposed to be virtuous. Good for us. And yet, plans usually change. To-dos don’t get done. Life gets in the way. And our planning systems don’t keep up. So just what’s the point?

We have an enormous tendency to confuse confidence with competence. We want someone who can do the work, but we tend to trust the person that looks the part. Doing so is inherently dangerous, and points to some significant biases we may not even recognize.

The most common answer to questions that I provide is, “It depends.” Not because I’m being difficult; because it’s the truth. Yet I find I dislike this answer as much as the next person. Nonetheless, it is what opens the doorway to opportunity and possibility.