The group had hit a snag. 

It was a familiar sticking point. One they’d run into before. Same disagreement, different day. Competing priorities, different theories about how their business actually runs. It felt like there was a fracture in the room. Subtle but familiar.

There were heads shaking; mutterings to their neighbour; talking past each other. 

One of the group looked at me, arms crossed, and said:

“So Simon... What do you think we should do?”

I bit my tongue.

I could feel the load of expectation climb onto my shoulders. 

Every instinct in me wanted to answer.
To be useful. Expert. Decisive.
To fix it.

But I didn’t.

Instead, I asked: “How does what I think help here?”

Awkward silence. 

I tried again. “What do you actually want from this conversation?” 

More silence. But the kind of silence that matters. 

Not the silence of avoidance.
Not disengagement.
But the kind that holds tension with care.
The kind that says: I’m still here. I’m not going to fix this for you. But I’m holding a space for you while we work through it.

What I like to call compassionate silence. 

After a few moments, one of the team spoke. “Can we maybe just all stop trying to persuade each other, and listen a bit more?”

From that pivotal moment, the room began to shift. 

______

As leaders, we often get caught in the middle - between competing voices, expectations, the pressure to decide.

It’s tempting to speak too soon.  
To relieve the discomfort.  
To rescue the room.

But sometimes, the most powerful thing you can do is… leave space.

Until next time,
Simon 

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I'm currently helping my clients in 3 key ways: 

• Facilitating the conversations that matter most in leadership teams
• Designing meaningful leadership development programs for experienced leaders
• Helping teams and organisations crack the collaboration code

If any of those are on your radar right now, drop me a line - I'd love to chat.