Hope IS a Strategy

FWD 122: Winning the War Against Uncertainty and What Kind of Leader is Needed Now

I had a boss years ago who used to abuse that saying "Well, may we live in interesting times." It was his way of exhaling when things were hard and he didn't know the answers. But it was also his way of shirking responsibility for making things better.

I suspect we could all do with less "interesting times." And while prevailing winds continue to push growth leadership into the background, prioritizing incrementalism and consolidation, we cannot subsist on just getting through.

HOPE, contrary to its reputation, is a strategy.

I discussed HOPE in the video essay below, why the tactical hamster wheel keeps getting worse, and what leaders who want to be followed must do today.

For those who prefer to read, a brief summary of the video essay is below. I sincerely hope tht you are not forging your way through the jungle of 2025 alone. Find who you can trust, invest in their strategic partnership, and open new doors for yourself and others.

Summary of Hope is a Strategy

We're trying something new today. Maybe it'll stick, maybe it won't. But I couldn't bring myself to sit down and write another post about "three ways to build trust" or "five tips for business growth." It felt... disconnected. Like the kind of content that checks a box but doesn’t really say anything. We all play this game—trying to create content that stands the test of time, that can be cataloged and referenced, that aligns with "best practices." But here’s the thing: we live in time. We live in the moments we’re in. And right now, this moment is noisy.

Uncertainty is the word of the day. Economic instability, shifting markets, headlines full of chaos. If you look at what CEOs are actually saying in their private circles, it’s not optimism—it’s words like “uncertainty” and “terrifying.” But we don’t talk about that in business content, do we? It’s not a great call to action: "Hire us, we’re scared too!" But it’s the truth. People are feeling it. You’re feeling it. I’m feeling it.

And uncertainty requires leadership.

Not the “everything is amazing” kind of leadership. Not the grand, sweeping visions of a utopian future. But the leadership that says: because of what we do today, there will be better doors to walk through tomorrow. Maybe not for the whole world, but for our people—our employees, our clients, our customers. It’s the kind of leadership that says, “In the space we control, we are going to create better.”

It’s hard to do this when you, yourself, are dealing with doubt. When your leads aren’t coming in the way they used to. When Google’s algorithm has decided you don’t exist. When the tactics that worked last year are producing diminishing returns. And yet, that’s the moment when real leadership happens. When you choose to hold space—not in the corporate buzzword way, but in the very real way of saying, "We are here. We are steady. You can trust us to keep building something worth having."

Right now, a lot of businesses are operating from a place of contraction. Taking what they can from a shrinking pie. But the winners? The ones who will make it through this moment and thrive? They’re not focused on getting a bigger slice—they’re focused on making a bigger pie in the arenas they control. They are owning a specific and narrow space where hope is contextual and personal, specific and narrow.

That might sound like magical thinking, but it’s not. It’s strategic thinking. It’s choosing to build rather than extract. And that starts with knowing your corner. Because in a digital world where every piece of information is at your fingertips, it’s easy to feel like you have to have an opinion on everything, to be responsible for everything. But you don’t. You need to pick your corner, own it, and say, "This is where we’re making things better. If you want in, let’s go."

That’s the work. That’s what I help people do—find their signal in the noise, carve out their space, stop blending into the chaotic mess of sameness, and start standing out in a way that is uniquely theirs. The alternative is scrambling for a fraction of a percentage point in an ever-shrinking pie, and honestly? That sucks.

We still have better options.

So, let’s take them. Forward, Forward.