How to navigate uncertainty and design the future of work

Jim Lawless works behind the scenes with exec teams at some of the world’s leading organisations to deliver their strategy globally once the consultants have gone. His methodologies for successfully and quickly shifting human thinking, behaviour and decision-velocity across an organisation have become well-known, in part because he is also known for testing them on himself.

He became the deepest freediver in British history, the first to pass 100m, in just 8 months. He took a bet for a single pound to become a jockey in a televised race within one year. He was 25 percent over the maximum weight limit and could not ride a horse.  He understands well that achieving a bold vision requires stepping away from familiar routines and embracing the discomfort and uncertainty of publicly doing something entirely new.

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That discomfort and uncertainty is the reality facing talent leaders right now. Progress does not happen in familiar territory. Familiar operating models no longer guarantee success. To meet these new demands, leaders must consciously step out of their comfort zones and into what Lawless calls the ugly zone. This is the space where risk and uncertainty live. Yet, it is the only place where true progress happens. Change always starts with an event. Leaders can either wait for a crisis to push them into this space, or they can choose to create the event themselves.

Moving into this uncertain space requires a system to sustain momentum when self-doubt creeps in. Lawless introduced the DARE Loop as a practical tool for leaders. The model stands for decision, action, result, and evaluate. Instead of waiting for perfect conditions, successful leaders use this framework to drive progress. They make a clear decision, take immediate action, observe the result, and evaluate the outcome. This loop replaces emotional hesitation with intellectual design. When the internal voice of doubt tells a leader they have no right to lead a new initiative, the DARE Loop keeps them grounded. That anxiety is a feature, not a bug, signaling that they are finally doing work that matters.

The most critical shift is recognising where real change actually happens. It does not occur in hypothetical strategy documents or theoretical discussions. As Lawless noted, "Change happens in your calendar." Leaders must allocate concrete time to build tomorrow rather than simply optimising for the demands of yesterday. This requires embracing the discomfort of the unknown. "The unit of transformation and performance is the human being," Lawless explained. "It's your voice at the executive table. You design your future and you design the future in many ways of the organisation. So we need you to accept that power." When the internal voices of doubt grow loud, leaders must press forward anyway. Lawless reminded the audience, "the very definition, surely, of courage is we choose to go and do the right thing, even though we don't really feel like it, we don't feel ready, we don't know if it's going to be OK." 

Lawless shared, "If we're going to accelerate into uncertainty, if we're going to optimise for adaptability and speed, which I'm suspecting is critical to why you're here today, we're going to have to develop the skill of doing things we've never done before, uncertainty and risk." LinkedIn gives talent leaders the data, tools, and connections to do exactly that — building the capability to move decisively when uncertainty demands it.

Navigating the ugly zone is never easy. Refusing to enter it, however, guarantees stagnation. Talent leaders hold the pen to write the future of their organisations, but they must first choose to take that bold leap. Success belongs to those who act decisively, evaluate their progress, and refuse to let tomorrow look exactly like today. 

Ready to take the next step? Our team is here to help you build a talent strategy that's fit for what's coming. Get in touch.