If your plans suddenly changed tomorrow, what principle would guide your next move? Read on to discover the ideas professionals rely on when uncertainty arrives.

Simplify the Next Decision, Not Everything

As a result of working within transportation, events, customer service, and SaaS, I experience constant change accompanied by pressure.

The principle I live by is to simplify rather than complicate the next decision. Change triggers the tendency to fix everything all at once. It results in chaos. What I did learn was to split the situation into the decision of protecting something, fixing something else, and leaving some problems to be solved when the time comes.

This approach proved helpful to us when implementing operations transformations at LAXcar and in building fleeter.ai. Instead of following any fads and trends, we made sure that we chose only those that increase the reliability for our customers and lower the complexity of work for our team. It has been reported by McKinsey that 70% of all transformation projects end up being unsuccessful due to employee resistance and management’s unwillingness to implement changes (source: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/transformation/our-insights/perspectives-on-transformation).

Arsen Misakyan, CEO and Founder, LAXcar

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Tech Moves Fast, People Need Truth

I’ve been working in search for over two decades now, and I’m not surprised anymore. There was the panic about Google updates before, and now I can witness the same thing about the new AI-powered search. And there’s one thing that stays my constant truth – technology moves fast, but people don’t. People want their queries answered honestly and with value in many spheres, including finance and healthcare, and most companies just go with the trend while ignoring the proven methods.

Derek Iwasiuk, Co owner, Director of Marketing, Searchtides

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Progress Demands Clarity Before Speed

The principle we return to is that real progress should not reduce clarity. During change people often mistake speed for leadership. We have learned that speed works only when everyone knows what matters what is changing and what will stay the same. Clear thinking builds confidence and that confidence helps teams move with purpose.

When things change we first make the message simple. What problem are we solving what do people need now and what should we stop doing because it does not serve the mission. We have seen that clear priorities reduce friction and improve decisions across the team. Change feels easier when people are not guessing and they can focus their effort in the right place.

Christopher Pappas, Founder, eLearning Industry Inc

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Do What You Must Under Pressure

Do what you must, and see what comes of it.

That is the principle I keep coming back to. Not because it is optimistic, but because it is the only thing that actually holds up under pressure.

It removes the paralysis. You are not responsible for controlling what happens. You are responsible for doing what needs to be done.

Nick Anisimov, Founder, FirstHR

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Lead With Values, Clarity, and Heart

The principle that continues to guide me through change is staying grounded in my values while leading with emotional intelligence. When things shift, I focus on purpose-driven connection and clear communication so people feel supported and understand the path forward. I also remind myself that perspective matters as much as a resume, because how we show up and listen often determines how well a team navigates uncertainty. If I can lead with clarity and heart, I can help teams move through change in a way that strengthens culture rather than eroding it.

Jon Schneider, President and Founder, Recruiterie

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Design Systems for the Brain You Have

I’ve learned that ADHD isn’t a problem you solve. It’s just how your brain works. That’s the starting point for everything I do. When life throws you a curveball, those standard productivity tips everyone loves? They collapse immediately if you have ADHD. I stopped telling my clients to force themselves into systems that were never going to work. Now we build around how their brains actually function. It’s straightforward: quit trying to squeeze into a framework built for a completely different kind of brain. Here’s the thing I say all the time: your brain works fine, it’s the one-size-fits-all approach that doesn’t. Once that clicks, you stop thinking you need to be fixed and start thinking about what would actually work for you. That’s when things start to move.

Stephanie Camilleri, Director at Empower ADHD, Empower ADHD

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Lead Change With Uncompromising Integrity

Integrity is the guiding principle I return to when facing change. I believe integrity is non-negotiable because without it people will question your vision and actions, and you cannot build trust. That conviction comes from mentoring leaders for more than 25 years and from the Six Pillars framework I laid out in my book published in December 2024. When I lead through change I prioritize transparent decisions and actions that create psychological safety and clear expectations.

Jim Carlough, The Leadership Identity Architect, Jim Carlough Author, Leadership Consultant, Speaker

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Do Right When No One Watches

Do the right thing even when nobody is checking. I keep coming back to what people call the shopping cart rule, the idea that returning the trolley says something about you precisely because no one is forcing you to.

Running a team split across Sydney and Nepal, a lot of what we do happens out of sight of each other. There is no manager hovering, no client watching the work get done. So the only thing that really holds it together is everyone choosing to do good work when it would be easy not to. Change tests that constantly, and the people who quietly do the right thing anyway are the ones I build around.

Nirmal Gyanwali, Founder & CEO, WP Creative

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Protect Relationships Over Short-Term Gains

How you treat others during tough times is remembered far longer than what you accomplish during good times.

This is true for every business relationship. When times get tough and decisions become difficult, the natural reaction is to protect your numbers before your relationships. Every time I flipped that equation and protected relationships at the expense of our short term results it came back to reward us tenfold. Every time I didn’t, I regretted it. 

Running an agency through bull and bear markets and industry upheaval, the one consistent was that people wanted to do business with someone they trusted. Developing trust when times are good is important, but maintaining it when they’re not is what dictates whether a relationship lasts long enough to become meaningful.

Matt Bowman, Founder, Thrive Local

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Choose Facts Over Fear in Change

And one principle still helps me when everything else changes. I concentrate on what I know rather than what I fear. Change is inevitable in this business. Market conditions vary. Interest rates fluctuate. Sellers have varying time frames. But fear and speculation have never led me to the right answer. I inquire: What are the facts?

Not my hopes. Not my fears. Just the facts. That approach helps me to remain transparent in my choices, and keeps my team honest too. It allows me to deal with sellers fairly, because I am not looking for false buzz or making false promises. You can’t control change but you can always control how you deal with it. I trust clarity rather than fear every time. That faith has always served me well.

Blake DeWitt, CEO, Investorade

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Define the Worst Case, Then Act

The principle that guides me through change is defining what can go wrong. When things move fast, it is easy to let fear, self doubt, and imposter syndrome cloud your decisions. But if you sit down and define the worst outcome, you take the emotion out of it. You realize that even then, the world doesn’t end and you can move forward with no regrets. Once you get past the fear, you remember what you are capable of and just focus on creating for reality

Alex Smereczniak, Co-Founder & CEO, Franzy

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Keep People Central to Every Hire

As the founder and leader of an IT recruitment firm, there is one principle that has remained constant in the 20+ years since I started my business, regardless of how much technology or workforce expectations have changed: people make the difference. 

We’ve seen major shifts in the IT and engineering talent markets, from economic cycles and skill shortages to remote work and AI adoption. The organizations that consistently succeed are those that never lose sight of the human element. Technology can bring you new data and help you work more efficiently, but in the end hiring the right people into the right roles still comes down to understanding their motivations, strengths and potential. 

This belief that people are the most important factor guides everything we do in our work with candidates and clients. It’s tempting to focus just on speed or cost when the market is uncertain, but the best long-term hiring decisions come out of taking the time to understand team dynamics and organizational culture, and how a professional’s skills and career aspirations fit into that. Our goal as a firm is to embrace innovation without losing sight of the people behind it. Keeping people centered in our decision-making lets us be better positioned to build strong teams and create lasting success for our clients while we navigate change.

Archie Payne, Co-Founder & President, CalTek Staffing

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Split Test to Guide Change With Data

When in doubt, split test.  In times of change, with multiple potential solutions, split test to get data to guide you through change. 

While that answer is pretty simple, what complicates it are human beings. 

In dynamic situations, full of change, people can often get attached to a solution. 

In campaigning for “the” solution, it morphs into “their” solution. 

Split testing avoids ownership issues, emotional attachments, and gets buy in with objective data to support change.

Jayson Hardie, CEO, Homestead Financial Mortgage

Share Your Insights

Share your thoughts in the comments:

• What value guides your decisions during uncertainty?
• How do you stay focused when circumstances change?
• Which insight from this roundup resonated with you most?

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