WritingCoaching Corner

You Don’t Need to Know .... Yet. You Need to Stay Open.

1 August 2025

You Don’t Need to Know .... Yet. You Need to Stay Open.

“I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”

, Albert Einstein

We all crave answers. Plans. Certainty.

But not knowing everything isn’t weakness. It’s honesty.

Staying open isn’t passive. It’s powerful.

In general I have found that one of the most liberating shifts is this:

You don’t have to know (just yet).

You just have to stay curious a little longer.

When we force clarity too soon, we shrink what could be endless possibilities and very often move to advice giving.

We grab the first answer that feels safe, not the one that feels right.

What I mean when I say “staying open” is:

  • Listening without rushing to fix - tame your advice monster

  • Noticing what feels still active, even if it’s unclear

  • Sitting with the question a little longer, dig deeper, start digging

It’s uncomfortable, for sure - but it’s also where real insight lives.

So if you’re in the fog, the pause, the messy middle …. take a breath.

You’re not stuck. You’re still unfolding.

Certainty is easy.

Curiosity is where transformation begins.

Remember, the path to extraordinary is walked with a thousand small steps, you’re doing great!

Small Steps, Giant Leaps is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Barry Marshall-Graham smiling

Barry Marshall-Graham

Executive coach and leadership advisor

IF THIS RESONATED

Get the Difficult Conversations Guide

A practical resource for leaders who want to say the thing that needs saying, without burning bridges or avoiding the moment.

More writing

Keep reading

8 June 2026

The C+ Deck: How Good Enough Becomes The New Standard

Good enough work from capable people is seductive because it almost passes. That is exactly why leaders must address it early.

The C+ Deck: How Good Enough Becomes The New Standard thumbnail

1 June 2026

Before You Call It Drift

Before naming underperformance, leaders need to check whether the system made success clear, possible, and properly supported.

Before You Call It Drift thumbnail

25 May 2026

The Tolerance Ledger: The Hidden Cost Paid By High Performers

When leaders leave repeated exceptions unresolved, the cost is paid by the people still protecting the work. They notice the unfairness before anyone says it out loud.

The Tolerance Ledger: The Hidden Cost Paid By High Performers thumbnail

18 May 2026

The Evidence Trap: When Proof Becomes Delay

Leaders do not always need more evidence. Often they need to decide what signal is enough to ask a fair question before the fireball arrives.

The Evidence Trap: When Proof Becomes Delay thumbnail

11 May 2026

The Worry Tax: What Avoided Conversations Do To Your Head

Avoided conversations do not only slow the team down. They rent space in the leader’s head and charge interest until clarity arrives.

The Worry Tax: What Avoided Conversations Do To Your Head thumbnail

4 May 2026

Silence Compounds Into Leadership Debt

The conversations leaders avoid do not disappear. They accrue interest in trust, pace, standards, and emotional load.

Silence Compounds Into Leadership Debt thumbnail

27 April 2026

The Shadow Campaign: The Cost of Corridor Agreement

When people agree in formal rooms and dissent in corridors, leaders lose execution signal and authority quietly leaks.

The Shadow Campaign: The Cost of Corridor Agreement thumbnail

20 April 2026

The Ghost Economy: When Activity Replaces Ownership

When teams optimise for visible activity instead of named ownership, work appears busy while outcomes quietly drift.

The Ghost Economy: When Activity Replaces Ownership thumbnail

13 April 2026

When Everything Finds You

When every question, tension, and half-finished decision climbs to the leader, the issue isn't workload alone. It is the absence of a clear routing system.

When Everything Finds You thumbnail

6 April 2026

The Soft Ending Trap

Hard conversations rarely fail at the opening. They fail when leaders soften the close, leave the standard vague, and walk away without a real commitment.

The Soft Ending Trap thumbnail