Leading in Uncertainty Without Losing Yourself
Have you ever been in a meeting or a conversation and suddenly felt tense, misunderstood, or even shut down without really knowing why? This happens to all of us, though all of us may not notice in the moment. What’s happening is your brain is sending you a threat signal in an effort to protect you. However, more times than not, you’re not really in danger but your brain doesn’t differentiate between when you do see a snake coming into your path or if in fact what you really see up ahead is a stick. This is an important piece to understand so you can learn how to manage your own automatic reactions and actively shift from a threat to a reward state.
With all that’s going on in the world right now, the changes coming about in your role or organization due to AI, the economy, and whatever else you’re facing, each day primes your brain to react from a threat state. This is when your amygdala activates and you go right into fight, flight, freeze, or fawn patterns. What happens in these moments is your focus narrows, cognitive capacity drops, creativity disappears, and collaboration feels impossible. You’re leading from a defensive stance and are more easily triggered. You're not being difficult. You're being human. To no surprise, this is the least productive place to be leading from when you’re trying to be effective in your role and for your co-workers.
The opposite is also true. In a reward state — when you feel safe, valued, seen — dopamine flows, trust opens up, and you do your best thinking. You’re able to bring a broader perspective and as a result better problem solving. You are literally more open, more curious, and more creative. This is a beautiful place to lead from and far more effective. That’s why the difference between these two states isn't just about how you feel; it’s how you lead.
A framework that I love to shine light on is from David Rock, a neuroscientist who coined the SCARF model to describe five specific domains that influence human social interactions and can trigger a threat or reward response in the brain. SCARF = Status, Certainty, Autonomy, Relatedness, Fairness, — and all five show up constantly in the workplace. Let’s take a closer look; I’ll give some common triggers for each, a workplace example, and a specific step to shift toward reward state.
