Your Next Clear Move

The Clarity Advantage for Leaders at Any Level

• Debbie Peterson of Getting to Clarity

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Heavy decisions don’t get easier just because you work harder. They get easier when you get clearer. We dig into how personal clarity becomes the quiet edge leaders use to choose what matters, say no to noise, and act with steady confidence—especially when pressure is high and time is short.

We start by reframing confusion as data and overwhelm as a signal that everything has started to feel equally important. From there, we unpack how internal state drives external behavior and why attention is the lever that directs your energy. You’ll hear practical examples of clarity at work: evaluating new roles and projects beyond the “shiny object” appeal, recognizing professional drift when your work no longer fits, and reading your calendar as a mirror that reveals your real priorities and bandwidth.

Then we turn insight into action. We outline five clarity-building practices: naming what you truly want, auditing hidden influences and inherited expectations, asking for the right kind of support, creating small pockets of thinking time, and protecting presence so people can trust your steadiness. Finally, we introduce the Clarity Compass—a four-point tool to move from vague intention to grounded action. You’ll map Why this decision matters, What outcome you’re aiming for, Who can help, and How to break the goal into focused categories, projects, and next steps. No massive plan required—just one next clear move in the next 48 hours.

If you’re ready to choose, not react, and lead with intention, this conversation gives you the filter, language, and toolkit to make better decisions today. Subscribe, share with a leader who needs clarity, and leave a review to tell us your next clear move.

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Hey, hello, and welcome back. I am Debbie Peterson of Getting to Clarity. I am so glad you're here. And this is another episode of the Getting to Clarity Show. This is the place where I help you to discover your next clear move. And today we're talking about, well, clarity, one of my favorite topics, and how it's an advantage for leaders at every level.

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Welcome to the Getting to Clarity Podcast.

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The place where busy leaders discover how to create more success in their leadership journey with less sacrifice in their life.

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Here's your host, Debbie Peterson of Getting to Clarity.

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So there comes a point in every career where maybe decisions get a little heavier or weightier, and it's not because you've suddenly become indecisive, but it's because the decisions matter more. It is what you choose affects your team. It affects your organization. It affects your well-being. So in leadership, it's not just about you anymore. It is about the people that you are surrounded with and the people that you lead. And sometimes that pressure to get it right can actually work against you. Some people work great under pressure. I know I can work under pressure, but when it comes to making really good decisions, that get it right pressure can kind of throw you a curveball because you need clarity to make decisions in the first place. So if you find yourself in a place where you're being pulled in two or more directions that you want to move forward, but you're not sure what direction to move in. You're not sure what direction deserves your energy. Well, you're not alone. We we go through this, but especially in leadership, and especially for those that are new to leadership. So this is one of the most common struggles that I hear from new leaders, emerging leaders, even if they've been in the workforce for a while. And, you know, even mid-career leaders who thought, hey, I thought I would have had this all figured out by now. This is exactly where clarity becomes a powerful tool in your toolbox. And it's it's not the kind of clarity that just kind of floats in when you're having a really calm zen sort of day. It's the kind of clarity that you choose on purpose when life isn't calm, when it isn't zen, when you're um experiencing things in your professional life, but it is personal clarity. So personal clarity is the foundation for better professional leadership decisions. So when you reconnect with who you are, what truly matters, then you stop chasing everything and you start making what I call clear moves. The decisions that support your growth, they support your team, and they support your organization. So here's what we're talking about. When I talk about clarity, I'm not talking about having every single step figured out or waiting until you feel ready. Because sometimes you got to make a move before you feel ready. But let me tell you, if this move has popped into your awareness, it's there for a reason and you are ready, even if you don't feel it. So I'm talking about understanding how clarity shapes the decisions that you make every single day, personally and professionally, because you are one person after all. I am talking about noticing what is pulling your attention. You know, consider the things that we're influenced by. What is what has got you distracted, the shiny objects? You know, what are the expectations that you've taken on that were never yours to carry? They belong to someone else, they place them upon you. What are the patterns that keep you overwhelmed or stalled? You know, consider the pressures that sneak into your decision making without you even knowing it. So clarity allows you to choose, and that's powerful, not react. And that is a small shift, it's a discernment, but it changes everything about how you show up as a leader. So here's why clarity matters so much in decision making. Um, when you don't know what matters, then everything feels like it matters. And we are so busy being busy in today's society that that is the quickest way to overwhelm when you don't know what truly matters. But when you get clear, then your choices become much simpler. You start to see what doesn't matter, and you start to notice what really needs your energy and your attention right now. And it's not what needs your attention one day or someday, but today. So clarity helps you to zero in on what matters. Clarity helps you to keep your emotions steady. Clarity helps you to lead with confidence, to really guard your space, you know, the personal bandwidth that you need to do your best work because you only have so much bandwidth. We only have so many hours in a day. So clarity helps you make good choices. Now, my studies in NLP have taught me that your internal state, your mindset, um, your beliefs that are internal shape your external behavior. Or to put it in another way, if you look at it in a more esoteric way, my studies in HUNA have taught me that your energy flows where your attention goes. So, what you put your attention on, then that's where your energy goes. And if your attention is scattered, if you are focused on everything, you know, kind of like the cyclops in the old movies that was scan the environment, well, then you're you're fractured, you're scattered. So clarity is what steadies all of that so that your decisions can follow in that manner. So where clarity shows up in real leadership moments, let's talk about that for a moment. This is what it looks like in the real world. Consider your career decisions. So if you are questioning how you deliver your work and if it still fits who you are, that isn't indecision or uncertainty, that's information for you. So clarity helps you to interpret it correctly without jumping to extremes. So consider what got you to where you are isn't necessarily going to get you to where you want to go. So if it doesn't feel like the way you're working fits you anymore, that's good information. Maybe it is an internal call that, okay, it's time to up-level in how you approach your work. It's time to re-engage in another way. Clarity also shows up in new opportunities. So every leader gets opportunities. And it might be that it's a new role in your organization. It might be that you're being uh called to a new project to mentor someone, uh, to participate on a um on a board of advisors or uh in the community, whatever it may be, whatever opportunities are out in front of you, they may not all be aligned. It may be, ooh, this is shiny and this is new, squirrel, but it may not be aligned with who you are. And I always say, just because you can do it doesn't mean you should. So when you have clarity, it helps you to evaluate those opportunities. Does this serve whom I'm becoming? Or is this a distraction that's just dressed up as potential? You know, is this really something that is going to allow me to step into my leadership at a new level? Or is this something that's going to take me away from that because it's not aligned with who I am? Clarity also shows up in your time and your energy investments. How many of you wish there was more hours in the day? How many of you wish you had more time? Okay. So your calendar is one of the clearest reflections of your clarity. It's written all over it. So when you know what matters, your time choices, they start to shift, they look different. And sometimes it can be dramatic. Leadership presence is another place where clarity shows up. So when you are grounded on the inside, when you are aligned, people feel that sort of steadiness on the outside. So it creates trust. People know who they're getting. Um, they know you're not going to overreact or at least overreact very much. So it shows up in your leadership presence. Now, how do we do this then? So, how do we bring more clarity into our leadership? So, this is where I want to give you some strategies. Clarity becomes usable. It is a tool. It is not a once in a blue moon, but it is everyday choices that build your leadership identity and presence. So, how does how does this happen? One, it is knowing what you truly want. Can you name what you truly want? And most people answer this at a surface level in their leadership. Well, I want to be successful. Um, I, you know, I want less stress. But clarity lives in the deeper layers. So for instance, you can ask yourself, what do I want more of in my day-to-day leadership to be successful, um, to move towards my version of success. Uh, it could be where am I out of alignment with my values that is causing me some stress? So it's getting more specific. You know, I worked with a leader once who thought that uh she had a workload problem, but it wasn't a workload problem because when she took a pause with me, you know, that was the only way she was going to get it. She was one of those ones that was proud and busy getting things done. But our sessions gave her a way to be in the moment, to give herself a chance to do that strategic thinking. And when she got honest, she realized that she had drifted away from the parts of her work that allowed her to lead her best because she was just trying to do it all. So that is something I call professional drift. And once she named that, she could be more intentional about where she put her focus. She could be uh more intentional about where she delegated, she could re-engage in her leadership in a way that brought back the energy that she hadn't felt in years. And we let it go on that long. So naming what you want resets your decision-making filter. Two, notice what influences you. I mean, consider everything around you uh, your team, your organization, your colleagues, your family, social media, movies, magazines. I mean, all of these are shaping our choices without realizing it. So influence becomes a problem when you start leading based on what others expect from you or what you think they expect from you, instead of leading from a place what you know is right for you and right for your team. So here's a simple practice pay attention to decisions that feel heavy. And notice are you carrying someone else's story about what you should do? Okay. Uh, that is a filter that can help with your decision making. Number three, ask for support. Clarity isn't a solo sport, leadership isn't a solo sport. Think about the people that can help you. Maybe they can help you see what you can't see. It could be a trusted colleague, it could be a mentor, um, it could be um a friend or someone from your social network who gives you really honest feedback. That means they're telling you what it is that you need to hear, not necessarily what you want to hear. Maybe it's somebody that you know, someone who asks better questions. Um, you know, you would be amazed at how quickly clarity comes out when you speak your thoughts out loud to someone else who listens without trying to fix you. Support strengthens leadership, it never weakens it. Clarity also shows up because it gives you, it creates you space to think. If your calendar is packed, likely it is, then your clarity has nowhere to land. You don't need an hour, you need just a pocket of space. So 10 minutes between meetings. Maybe it's a quiet moment in the car before you walk in the building. Um, maybe it's a walk during the day without your phone. Maybe it is beginning your morning before email. You give yourself that little bit of space before you get into the email. So what I'm inviting you to consider is reflection isn't indulgent, it's strategic. So that's where clarity can find you. And then number five, where you find clarity is using your clarity compass. So I've created a tool, it is a practical tool, and it's a clarity compass, and it guides you to give you direction and helps you determine your next clear move. And this is how it works. So pick a picture uh compass in your hand with the four directions north, south, east, and west. And we're gonna break it into pieces, your decision that you can actually work with. So in the north position, why? Why does this decision matter? So you want to think about the foundation underneath it. Um, why does this decision matter? What is the purpose of it? So you're reconnecting to that purpose, not an expectation. What in the east position? What are you aiming for? Get as specific as you can. Name the outcome. Okay, that gives you direction. Who in the south position? Leadership isn't meant to be solo. Who are the people that can help you? And and consider all of the people around you. It can be your manager or supervisor or your boss, it can be someone that you work with, it could be someone that you know in LinkedIn, it could be someone that's in a trade association, it could be a subject matter expert like me, it could be a coach like me, it could be uh anybody who can help you figure it out. It could be somebody who's doing it and they're just a couple of steps ahead of you. In the West position on the compass, how? How will you approach it? So, this is where you take the goal, um, the direction, and you're gonna move it from vague intention, and each level is gonna be more and more specific until you get into grounded action. That means that you're identifying the categories that you need to focus on in order to achieve this. It means that you're breaking down each of these categories into projects or um tasks that are gonna move you towards achieving it. You just a matter of minutes, you can create a whole roadmap. So, what's your next clear step? It's not the entire plan. You don't have to have the entire plan. You just have to have the next move that creates action, that keeps you in momentum. Leaders get stuck when they try to solve everything at once, when they think they have to have everything all figured out. So the compass turns your overwhelm into action. So here is the decision point that you're at right now. And maybe you're considering a decision and it's big or it's small, but I want to invite you to take one clear move in the next 48 hours. So think about what you've learned today. Pick a decision you've been avoiding, identify the real why behind it, and then take the next clear step. That's it. This is a simple practice that can shift how you communicate, um, how you collaborate with others, and how you step up and you contribute inside your organization. Now, if you would like to deepen the work for yourself or your team, then head to my website at www.debipetersonspeaks.com and explore the readiness reset keynote or um my customized readiness reset leadership development programming. Because when leaders get clear, they don't just make better decisions, they create environments where people are clear themselves and they want to stay and thrive. So until the next time, be good to yourself. And here's wishing you all the clarity you deserve. Take care. Bye-bye for now.

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Thank you for listening to this episode of the Getting to Clarity Podcast with Debbie Peterson.

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If you enjoyed this show, please rate and recommend it on iTunes or wherever you enjoy your podcast.

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To learn more about how you can bring Debbie and her transformational clarity leadership strategies to your organization, visit Debbie Petersonspeaks.com.

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Debbie Peterson, CSP

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