Ever found yourself circling a decision?
It's easy to wait, especially when the next step feels unclear, or your confidence has taken a hit.
This week’s newsletter explores what’s behind the hesitation and how to spot when waiting has turned into hiding.
In coaching sessions lately, I've heard versions of this again and again:
"Maybe it's not the right time."
"Let's see what happens with the restructure."
"I'm still figuring out what I want."
"I used to feel more confident going for roles like this."
These are familiar phrases. I've said some of them myself and sometimes they're true.
But other times they're placeholders, ways to keep moving without actually deciding anything.
Waiting can feel like the right thing to do, but it often becomes a way to disconnect.
Not always from others, but from ourselves.
We abandon what we want, because we let logic, fear, rejection and perhaps uncertainty of success, take over.
And we start to shrink our own ambitions down to what feels safe or justifiable (often to someone else).
What's underneath the waiting?
It's not always fear.
It's not always self-doubt.
Sometimes it's grief.
For the version of you who used to be sure.
For the career that made sense.
For the team, the structure, or the mission that gave everything meaning.
Other times, it’s a subtle pattern you haven’t quite noticed, like believing it’s not your role to initiate change, or waiting for someone else to make the first move so you don’t disrupt the dynamic.
These are deeply human responses.
But if we sit with them too long without naming them, the harder it gets to move at all.
My goodness, the number of times I've done this
Not because I didn't know what I wanted, but because the cost of moving felt high.
Like I was being disloyal, ungrateful, or saying out loud that I wasn't happy.
The assumption that my truth would hurt someone else and perhaps cause a negative reaction.
And sometimes that feels big enough to then say: “I’m still thinking about it.”
But here's the thing...clarity rarely shows up just from thinking
It usually shows up when we start moving. I'm not talking BIG leaps, I'm speaking about small and honest moves.
Saying what you want out loud.
Writing the application.
Asking the question you’ve been rehearsing in your head.
Those actions may not resolve everything. But they'll give you back your sense of agency.
And they remind you that you still have a say in how this next chapter goes.
This week's invitation is simple
Start treating your hesitation as data.
What is it pointing to?
What's one thing you do know, even if it's just a small step, that you're willing to move on?
This week's Leadership Reflection Journal Page
Use this to help you explore the signals behind your hesitation and what they might be telling you.
It's not about pushing yourself to act, take this opportunity to connect within.
The fun part about this week's newsletter is... you don't need to wait...you just need to click on this link and start by being honest with yourself.
With you,
Linda
Touching Distance | Within Reach
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