Judged on Things You Don't Fully Control
About this episode
This episode discusses the challenges faced by middle managers and introduces a framework for gaining clarity in situations beyond their control.
Every middle manager knows the feeling: things show up on your annual review that never appeared on your to-do list. You're expected to boil the ocean every day. You're held responsible for outcomes that depend on people, circumstances, and decisions that are never fully yours. It's not a personal failing — it's the defining tension of life in the middle. In this episode, we share what might be the single most useful idea in The Fog of Work — a simple, three-step framework for finding clarity and action in exactly those moments. We call it the fog-clearing sentence, and it's the punchline the whole book builds toward. Not a pep talk. Not a call to push harder. A repeatable system for extracting what you can do from situations that feel completely out of your control. If you've ever walked out of a meeting with your boss wondering how you were supposed to deliver something that was never really in your hands — this episode is for you. Download a free Control Your Controllables Worksheet here: https://adamtarnow.com/fogresources Purchase a copy of The Fog of Work Amazon: https://a.co/d/0e3k3Wag Barnes & Noble…
More episodes of How to Lead with Clay Scroggins and Adam Tarnow
- Whole Leaders, Wild Trust (featuring Dr. Rob McKenna)
- It's Here and It's For You
- Why You Need to Throw More Parties
- Good People Make Good Leaders
- What Actually Matters Early In Your Career
- What No Leader Really Wants, but Every Leader Needs
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