The 10-Minute Window

This is the Minute Business Riff (MBR). Quick takes. Big swings. Leadership riffs you can read in less time than it takes to scroll LinkedIn aimlessly.

One minute. One idea. That’s it.

Today’s word count: 260

It took me 1 min 03s to read this.

A Director I worked with once made the same mistake we all make:

She waited too long to fix a problem everyone already saw.

Morale was dipping. People were venting in 1:1s.

There were whisper complaints about how priorities kept shifting, how leadership felt
“distant,” how no one knew what we were actually trying to win.

She felt it too. But she wanted to handle it the right way.

So she started drafting a plan.

A strategy doc. Messaging pillars. Timeline. Stakeholder review.

Three weeks in - still nothing sent.

Then, out of nowhere, one of her senior ICs walked.

Not because of pay. Not because of a better title.

Because he didn’t think anyone was going to do anything.

That was the moment she realized: She didn’t need a strategy. She needed a signal.

People weren’t asking for answers.

They were asking for action.

So the next day, she scrapped the deck and sent a 5-line Slack to her team:

“I know things have felt unclear lately. I’ve heard you. We’re simplifying. I’ll explain more in today’s huddle.”

That single message?

Flipped the energy. Instantly.

Because people don’t need you to fix everything right now.

But they need to know you see it. That you’re moving. That you care.

Tactical Takeaway:

If your team’s waiting on you - don’t stall while you craft the perfect plan.

Acknowledge.
Communicate.
Move.

Speed doesn’t just fix things faster.

It tells your team you’re in the fight with them.

And that alone buys you time, trust - and retention.

Think this was a banger? Think I’m full of it?

Either way, hit reply and drop some truth bombs.

I read every email 😁

Great leaders are made in minutes. Not meetings.