Leadership and Decision Taking: Courage in the Midst of Uncertainty

Some time ago, I accompanied a non-profit organisation through the development of a new strategy. The mandate was clear: to support the board and leadership team in shaping a vision and priorities for the coming years. What followed, however, was anything but clear. Instead of progress, we found ourselves circling. Instead of clarity, confusion. Instead of shared direction, frustration.

The reason was not a lack of expertise. The team was motivated, the board committed, and there was no shortage of ideas. The real obstacle was leadership, or, more precisely, the absence of it.

The director was unable to take decisions. Or rather: he/she was

unable to stand by them. Even when a small next step was agreed, he/she would come back days later to revise or undo it, and he/she insisted that I, too, was not allowed to further pursue the direction agreed earlier. This person’s fear of taking the “wrong” decision paralysed the organisation, as well as the strategy process. We all ended up wobbling between topics, timelines, and tasks, without a clear sense of what should be discussed, decided, or pursued. The process lost its meaning.

This experience has stayed with me. It highlighted, in a very tangible way, what leadership is—and what it is not.

Leadership requires courage

At some point, a leader has to decide. Waiting for everyone to agree, or for perfect certainty, is not leadership. It is avoidance. And postponement breeds confusion.

A good decision does not mean that every voice is satisfied. In fact, disagreement is normal and healthy. What matters is that the leader communicates the decision transparently: what reflections led to it, what arguments were weighed, and which perspectives were not adopted, while still acknowledging their validity. This kind of honesty does not eliminate disappointment, but it builds trust. It shows that the process was real, that different positions were heard, and that the leader is ready to take responsibility.

Leadership requires flexibility

Decisions are not forever. Sometimes new information shows that a course of action was misguided. Sometimes circumstances change. Then, the ability to change direction becomes just as important as the ability to set one.

Flexibility, however, is not the same as indecision. It is not about constantly reopening questions out of fear. Flexibility is the willingness to say: “We thought this was the best path. We now know better. Here is why we are changing direction, and here is where we will go from here.” Again, communication and honesty are essential. People can accept a change of course, if they understand it.

Why decisions are never purely rational

We often like to believe that leadership decisions can be purely rational, based on analysis and evidence. But that is an illusion.

Decisions about the future are, by definition, decisions about something that does not exist. They are projections, informed by data and reasoning, yes—but also by values, intuition, and emotion. This is not a weakness. It is the very nature of decision taking. Neuroscience shows us that no decision is ever made without emotion: it is part of how our brain functions. Pretending otherwise only leads to frustration.

Leaders who acknowledge this reality—who admit that decisions carry uncertainty, that they are a mix of facts and feelings—are not weak. They are courageous. Because they dare to step out of the illusion of complete control and calculability. They admit what is true for all of us: that leading is not about knowing everything in advance, but about navigating the unknown with responsibility.

A few recommendations for leaders

From this experience, my recommendations are simple, though not easy:

• Take decisions. Do not wait for perfect certainty or universal agreement.

• Communicate transparently. Share your reasoning, acknowledge other valid positions, and be honest about the uncertainties.

• Carry responsibility. Make it clear that you own the decision, not the group, not the process, not “the circumstances.”

• Adapt when necessary. If a decision proves wrong, change course with honesty, and explain the new direction clearly.

  
  

This is what leadership looks like: courage paired with flexibility, clarity paired with openness. It is not about pretending to control the future, but about helping others move into it with confidence, even when the path is not yet fully visible.

The organisation I worked with did not manage to get there at that point. But the lesson it taught me is one that I will carry forward: without courage to decide, there can be no leadership. And without honesty to adapt, there can be no trust.