Clarifying the Situation

These questions are meant to help you pause, reflect on what might be happening, and consider whether an outside perspective could be useful.

You do not need to answer these questions perfectly or all at once. They are prompts meant to help you notice patterns, tensions, or decisions that may be coming due.

• Are decisions taking longer or feeling harder than they used to?
• Are the same issues resurfacing without clear resolution?
• Is there agreement on goals, but less clarity on priorities or tradeoffs?
• Are board discussions drifting into management details or staying too high-level?
• Do different people describe the organization’s challenges in very different ways?
• Is the organization reacting to pressure rather than choosing direction?
• Is it difficult to explain the current situation clearly to others?

If any of these feel familiar, it does not mean something is wrong. It may simply mean the situation has outgrown the frame you are using to understand it.