Finding Focus in a Chaotic Work Atmosphere

If I were asked what I’m advising nonprofit Executive Directors and CEOs on right now, it's this. Focus on helping your team reduce the noise and focus on what truly matters. Federal funding shifts, executive orders, labor market issues, AI coming for everyone's jobs. They’re real and they’re swirling. But the strongest teams I work with don’t let all that noise dictate their days. Or their focus. 1. Don’t underestimate the power of your culture. That’s what keeps your team steady when the environment is anything but. 2. Don’t overestimate the headlines. They’re important, but they don't move your mission. Focus on building clarity around what’s essential. Focus on reinforcing the culture that makes your work durable. Even when the operating environment is anything but. • 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗲𝗲: Leaders must lead by example. If you want focus and calm, show focus and calm.    • 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗹𝘆: Over-communicate what matters most. Clarity comes from repetition and reinforcement.    • 𝗔𝘀𝗸 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸: Don’t assume you know what’s working or not. Actively seek input from your team and constituents.    • 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀: In turbulent operating environments, values act as a compass. Keep them front and center to guide decisions.    • 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲, 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘁: Avoid getting stuck in what’s been done. Help your team see where you’re going next.    • 𝗕𝗲 𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗲𝘁 𝗚𝗼: What worked yesterday might not tomorrow. Be ready to adapt your own habits and expectations. The swirl won’t stop. But your team doesn’t have to spin with it.

There's a quiet tension every Chief of Staff knows well: You’re supposed to bring structure, but most days you’re just dealing with interruptions. Over time, you get used to moving fast, responding quickly, solving each new problem. It feels productive, even normal. So you build systems to manage it all, hoping that'll help. The issue is, sometimes those systems only cover up what's really happening. Not every urgent request actually needs to be solved immediately. Not every crisis is really a crisis. If you’re always jumping in to fix things right away, you might miss what's causing those problems in the first place. Instead of rushing to respond, try slowing down just enough to notice: → Is this actually urgent, or does it just feel urgent because someone said it was? → Can I challenge that assumption before diving in? → Am I fixing what's underneath, or just putting on another patch? → Do my systems prevent problems, or just help me deal with them faster? Knowing how to filter out (not just manage) noise can do a world of good to a pretty chaotic environment. (If this sounds familiar, send me a DM—I'd love to hear how you're handling it.)

Dan was drowning. Back-to-back meetings. Hundreds of Slack messages. A to-do list that never ended. When I asked him how he was doing, he sighed: “Honestly? I don’t have a second to think. But that’s the job, right?” It was a badge of honor. Busyness meant importance. Productivity. Progress. Except it wasn’t working. His team was second-guessing decisions. Execution was slowing down. And Dan—despite all his effort—felt like he was running in place. So I asked him a question: “What if your 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚 isn’t the thing that moves the company forward? What if your 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 is?” We started small. Five minutes at the start of each meeting, just listening instead of reacting. No Slack before noon. Walking outside (without the phone) before solving a tough problem. At first it felt unnatural. But then, something shifted. Dan made fewer decisions—but the right ones. He stopped jumping in—and his team stepped up. By doing less, the company moved faster. Presence replaced urgency. Clarity replaced chaos. Most leaders believe the more they do, the better things get. But in reality, the more present they are, the better things get. “I thought I had no time,” Dan told me later. “Turns out, I just wasn’t using it.” ps - This is not an invitation to abandon speed. Pace is often necessary, but far from sufficient. 𝗣𝗮𝗰𝗲 + 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 can be a powerful advantage. But pace without presence is noise--waste.