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In a 2019 Wisdom from the Top podcast interview, former CEO of Autodesk, Carl Bass, shared his renegade leadership strategy:
In challenging times, “you want to have conviction, but not certainty. You need to have a steady hand on the tiller, but you can’t go back and forth all the time.” “I thought of myself as the bus driver. If I try to avoid every pothole and everything in the road, everyone in the back of the bus will get pretty nauseous.” Carl joined Autodesk when it acquired his start-up in 1993. Shortly thereafter, CEO Carol Bartz identified Carl as her successor and mentored him to take the helm upon her retirement. During Carl’s tenure, he faced considerable challenges: a financial crisis, a recession, an activist investor, and the company’s new business model. Carl met each challenge with bold decision-making. He forged a path forward with no guarantee of success. “Conviction but not certainty” is clarity of purpose combined with a tolerance for ambiguity. Ambiguity is tough, however, especially for leaders who like to be in control! When the unknown feels too risky, they tend to gather more evidence, produce surveys, overanalyze data, and seek consensus. But people want to follow leaders who possess confidence, commit to some path, and are decisive. They don’t need a guarantee; they need vision in the midst of fog. They need leadership. Moving ahead without certainty is where significant progress occurs, ideas are born, and trust is built – in ourselves and each other. Agreeing to mentor is conviction without certainty. We invest in a mentee’s potential before they can show us results. Taking a new job is conviction without certainty. We invest our career in a new team with no assurance of success. Even getting married is conviction without certainty. We invest in a union with the promise of forever but not a warranty. Why? Because we believe in the possibility of the future. And that belief is louder than our fears. That belief emboldens us to improvise, innovate, iterate, and improve. Undeterred by the unknown, we navigate, adapt, and adjust, eager to discover and learn as we go. So, when we don’t take action, it’s not the guarantee we are missing. It’s the belief. And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. ~ Anais Nin © 2025. Ann Tardy and MentorLead. www.mentorlead.com. All Rights Reserved. |