Uncertainty isn’t the enemy - Stagnation is

Business leaders crave predictability and stability. When things are stable, we feel efficient and effective. The logic is that stability equals success.

Yet when uncertainty creeps in, sentiment spikes, emotions run high, and confidence erodes. We start to question whether our actions will even work — because we’ve never been here before.

This, though, is the very terrain adventurers seek. The unknown mountain. The unexplored depth.

Most of us don’t enjoy that terrain. We try to build stability instead — adding new processes, reports, and meetings to feel more certain.

But today’s environment won’t cooperate. Uncertainty and unpredictability are now tightly woven into every business system. Leaders navigating tomorrow’s complexity need a different response.

Rather than pulling the stability lever, pull the pioneer one.
Adopt the mindset of an adventurer who sees the unknown as invitation, not threat.

In uncertain times, sense-making is the skill that separates reaction from adaptation. Models like SWOT, PESTLE, and VRIO help us scan the landscape, yet they stop short of integration.

That’s where artificial intelligence extends our reach. AI synthesises the data, but it’s our natural intelligence — our reasoning, empathy, and judgement — that make sense of it.

The future of strategy will belong to those who can combine both.

“Clarity doesn’t come from avoiding the unknown. It comes from learning to read it.”
— Dr. Isabella Allan