The Calm Inside the Chaos: How Great Leaders Rise in Times of Uncertainty

When I asked an audience of 1,500 leaders to describe life in 2025, the most common word was chaos.

Not surprising, right?

Everywhere you look, there’s noise. Disruption. Rapid change.

Here’s the perspective I offered them: 

⚡ Chaos isn’t the enemy of leadership.

⚡ Chaos is the training ground for your next level

The leaders who thrive in 2025 and beyond aren’t the ones trying to “organize” or control the storm.

They’re the ones becoming the calm within it.

They don’t wait for things to get easier — they build strength inside the swirl.

I think it’s really important to look at both types of chaos 

Not just the loud kind—

⚡ The crisis meetings.

⚡ The breaking news.

⚡ The last-minute pivots.

But also the quiet chaos—

🌪️ The uncertainty that hums beneath the surface.

🌪️ The waiting, the wondering.

🌪️ The not-quite-knowing.

Most people treat chaos like something to fight or fix.

“If I can just organize it… fix it… control it… then I can lead with confidence.”

Harvard University’s Bob Keagan says in times of chaos, we have two choices:

1. Either we try to reduce the chaos and complexity or,
2. We increase our capacity to manage it

Which one have you been doing? And how has it been working?

✨ In leadership, the real power move isn’t in controlling the chaos. It’s in learning to lead in the chaos. 

✨ It’s not waiting until after the storm clears, but leading inside of the storm itself.

Because the leaders who make the biggest impact

🔥 Don’t rise in spite of chaos — they rise because of it.

🔥 They spot the cracks of opportunity no one else sees.

🔥 They move when others freeze.

🔥 They innovate when others cling to the old ways.

🔥 They bend with the winds instead of breaking under them.

This is how chaos becomes your competitive advantage.

If you’re navigating a storm right now — don’t wait for calm to rise.

🌊 Lean in.

🌊 Listen to what the mess is trying to teach you.

🌊 Find the strategies hidden in the swirl.

Because there’s a version of you on the other side —

More focused.

More resilient.

More powerfully YOU than ever.

This week’s leadership reflection:

👉 What is this chaos trying to reveal?

👉 Where is it creating space for reinvention?

Because sometimes, the breakthrough doesn’t come after the storm.

It’s hidden inside it.

Let’s win together! 

What practices and strategies are you finding most helpful in these times of chaos? 

Sky 🌟

Reflective Prompt

💭 What part of your current chaos could actually be clearing space for something better? What opportunity might be hidden inside the uncertainty?