Flying Blind: What Instrument-Rated Pilots Can Teach Us About Leading Today
Key Insights
Most leadership training covers clear skies and storms but skips the fog in between, where instrument-rated pilots offer a better model: trust intention and attention instead of waiting for clarity, since careful movement — not standing still — is what creates it. That skill matters more than ever now that COVID, AI adoption, and polarized values have made steady, predictable growth harder to sustain.
"Courage isn't the absence of fear.
It's the ability to move in spite of it."
When the Ground Disappears: Learning to Fly by Instruments
Every pilot starts out flying by sight—look out the window, find the horizon, trust what you see. That works until the clouds close in. Then comes the mandatory shift: you stop trusting your eyes and start trusting the instruments right in front of you.
Doug Thorp, a pilot himself, brought that image to a recent conversation with Pete Behrens, Founder and CEO of Agile Leadership Journey, on Leadership Powered by Common Sense. Doug described what happens when a pilot loses sight of the ground: untrained pilots panic, ignore the instruments, and can easily end up flying upside down without realizing it.
Pete sees the same pattern in corporate leadership. Most management training prepares leaders for two environments: clear skies, where you plan and execute, or storms, where you react to a crisis. Almost no one is trained for the fog in between where the path forward is obscured.
The default instinct in a fog is to wait: slow down, gather more data, and let things clear up before making a move. Pete maintains that is backwards. Standing still tells you nothing; careful movement is what creates clarity.
The Intention-Attention Cycle
To guide an enterprise through ambiguity without succumbing to panic or inertia – when the view out the window disappears – leaders need two specific anchors in their operating model:
Set Purposeful Intention
Setting intention in the fog requires defining where the organization needs to go without falsely claiming to know every step of how to get there.
It couples a resolute bold direction with vulnerability. As Pete puts it, "I have a goal, but I don't know how to get there and I need your help."
- Define clear outcomes
- Pair courage with vulnerability
- Invite collective problem solving
Practice Active Attention
Leadership demands active attention—maintaining a vantage point that is neither micromanaging from the ground floor nor completely isolated in an ivory tower.
By observing real-time feedback, monitoring early systemic indicators, and adjusting course continuously, leaders keep their organizations moving forward safely through uncertainty.
- Maintain balcony-and-ground view
- Monitor early indicators
- Inspect organizational realities
A Less Stable Ground to Stand On
When Doug questioned whether companies can still build decades of predictable growth the way they used to, both agreed the landscape has changed. Pete holds that two major shifts—the lingering impact of COVID and the speed of AI adoption—have changed the relationship between workers and leaders, making the business environment far less stable than it used to be. Doug added that workplace dynamics are further complicated by polarized values, making it harder for people with opposite viewpoints to come together and collaborate on solutions.
The fog isn't clearing anytime soon. Best to learn how to navigate it.
Watch the full conversation:
Leadership Powered by Common Sense, hosted by Doug Thorp and featuring Pete Behrens
READY TO TRADE GUESSWORK FOR INSTRUMENTS?
Into the Fog explores leadership through real stories from Pete's journey—moments on mountain peaks, in corporate boardrooms, and in the middle of decisions with no clear answer. Each story shows what it actually looks like to lead with intention and attention when the path forward isn't visible yet.
Whether you're flying through your own fog or helping your team find their way through one, these stories offer a place to start.
