The High Cost of Silence in Changing Times
Author: Julie Chance, Founder of Action Strategies by Design
When leaders go silent during uncertain times, assumptions get loud. Silence leaves space for doubt to grow.
Silence from leadership isn’t neutral—it’s a breeding ground for worst-case scenarios. When we create a void, we force our teams to become authors of their own fear. By the time the official message arrives, the damage to productivity and trust is already done.
If your silence is speaking for you, what story is it telling your team?
In times of continuous change, communication is a leader’s most powerful tool. How you communicate during challenging times can either strengthen or erode trust. Research shows that strong organizational communication during times of uncertainty can improve employees’ openness to change, strengthen their ability to cope, and build greater trust in the organization.
Throughout history, people have turned to leaders for direction in both stable and uncertain times. We look to them to understand what is happening, where things are headed, and what it might mean for us. Because of that, how leaders communicate really matters.
When I conduct 360-degree feedback debriefs with leaders, they tend to rate lowest on keeping their teams adequately informed and on providing direct, straightforward, and honest communication. These are the exact capabilities teams depend on most in times of uncertainty, yet most leaders have never been formally trained to develop them.
What are the Common Communication Mistakes Leaders Make During Uncertainty?
Even good leaders with the best of intentions can fall short when engaging in difficult conversations during times of crisis or change. It’s a natural instinct to want to look composed during a crisis, but withholding information usually breaks trust rather than building it. We’ve all witnessed these communication gaps, and let’s face it: most of us have fallen into these traps at some point in our careers.
- Waiting for the “Perfect” Plan – Sometimes we stay quiet because we don’t want to spread confusion before the ink is dry. But while we’re waiting for certainty, our teams are navigating a void. We have to get comfortable sharing the “work in progress.” It’s okay to say, “Here’s what we know, and here’s what we’re still figuring out.” Transparency, even when it’s messy, beats a perfect plan that arrives too late.
- Carrying the World on Your Shoulders – It’s an instinct to want to shield our teams from the heavy lifting of uncertainty. We absorb the stress so they don’t have to but we’re actually missing a huge opportunity. Our people are tougher and more creative than we often realize. When we invite them into the “unknown” with us, we don’t just lighten our own load; we give them a sense of agency and a seat at the table.
- Talking At People, Not With Them – It’s easy to just hit “send” on an email and move on. But real growth happens in the back-and-forth. During big shifts, people don’t just need information; they need to be heard. When we open up a real conversation, we stop guessing what’s wrong and start hearing what’s actually happening on the ground. It’s the difference between delivering a speech and building a solution.
- The “One-Size-Fits-All” Trap – We sometimes send the same generic update to everyone, hoping it covers the bases. But just like a “one size fits all” outfit, it rarely fits anyone quite right. Different people process change in their own way—some need the big picture, others need the tiny details. Learning to tailor our message shows that we actually see our people as individuals, not just roles on an org chart.
- Fearing the Pushback – When tensions are high, our first move is often to “keep the peace” by shutting down conflict. It feels safer, but it’s a missed chance for a breakthrough. Resistance isn’t a sign of failure; it’s a sign that people care. When we create a safe space for people to voice their frustrations, we aren’t losing control—we’re surfacing the very things we need to solve to get everyone truly on board.
- The “False Certainty” Mask – We think we need to have all the answers to keep the team calm, but people can smell “forced confidence” a mile away. It actually makes them more nervous. There is incredible power in saying, “I don’t know yet, but we’re going to find out together.” Genuine honesty builds a foundation of trust that “fake it ’til you make it” never could.
“If you think as a leader you can and should have all the answers, then you’re both wrong and significantly constraining the capacity of the organization to be creative.”
—IDEO CEO Tim Brown
How To Effectively Communicate With Your Team During Constant Change
Effective communication during uncertainty isn’t a personality trait that some leaders are born with. It’s a set of deliberate practices that any leader can develop. And it starts with making a fundamental shift in how you see your role.
Shift Your Mindset From Having All The Answers
Replace the belief that you need to have every answer before communicating with the understanding that your role is to help the team navigate uncertainty and change. Leaders should be clear about what they can be clear about, including the end goal and what success looks like. Then separate what the team can control from what they cannot, so people focus their energy on what they can influence rather than what sits outside their control.
I like to think of it as driving on a winding road in heavy fog. You know your destination. You can see the white line ahead and the next curve in front of you, and that is enough to keep you moving forward without needing to have full visibility all at once.
Acknowledge Uncertainty To Build Trust
Acknowledge where uncertainty still exists, even when doing so feels vulnerable. To reiterate, your team doesn’t need you to have all the answers. They need you to be honest about what you do and don’t know.
Instead of, “Everything is under control,” when it clearly isn’t, say: “Here’s what we know right now, and here’s what we’re still working to understand.” By openly acknowledging what is unclear, you show honesty, strengthen trust, and give the team a more realistic foundation to move forward.
Adjust Your Message To Fit Different Team Needs
Adapt your communication to meet people where they are
, rather than delivering a one-size-fits-all message. During change, individuals process uncertainty differently, and frameworks like Everything DiSC® can help leaders respond more effectively.
Different styles tend to need different things:
- D (Dominance): Involve them in decisions and give them room to act with autonomy
- I (Influence): Show them relational and social impact
- S (Steadiness): Clarify what will remain unchanged and outline the next few steps
- C (Conscientiousness): Explain the reasoning and logic behind the direction
Establish a Consistent Communication Cadence
Schedule dedicated check-ins for meetings and updates, like weekly check-ins, so everyone knows when to expect information and can plan ahead. Use that cadence to ask practical questions that keep progress moving: What worked? What didn’t? What did we learn? Where do we need to adjust? What are our next two to three steps?
The bigger, more continuous, or more uncertain the shift, the more leaders need to increase the frequency, so nothing is missed and everyone stays informed. According to KPMG, 51% of executives report that their organizations struggle to maintain regular communication during transformation efforts, underscoring the need for consistent ongoing conversations during change.
Bring Your Team Into the Conversation
Leaders don’t have all the perspectives they need, and shouldn’t pretend otherwise. Involving team members in shaping the direction and allowing space for resistance and healthy conflict surfaces critical information that leadership alone cannot see. It also builds the kind of ownership that makes teams more resilient when conditions shift again.
Adopt an Agile Framework
Adopt an agile way of working in the face of continuous change by shifting from rigid, long-term planning to iterative cycles that evolve as new information emerges. Implementing or adapting an agile framework provides structure for ongoing communication and steady progress, even without a fully formed plan.
An agile approach also makes the process more inclusive. Instead of relying on a top-down structure, it brings team members into continuous planning and feedback loops, strengthening ownership, adaptability, and shared accountability.
Communicate with Confidence in Uncertain Times
Start planning to communicate better and lead your organization through whatever scenarios come your way. Everything DiSC Work Smart for Managers on the Catalyst platform is a practical tool for helping leaders tailor their communication and lead more effectively in uncertain times. Contact us to learn more about how we can support your leadership development.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why is communication so important during times of change?
Communication helps reduce uncertainty and keep people aligned as conditions shift. Research shows that clear, consistent communication during change improves employee trust, supports adaptability, and increases openness to change because people better understand what is happening and what is expected of them.
2. What happens when leaders don’t communicate during uncertainty?
When leaders stay silent, teams tend to fill the gap with assumptions. This often leads to speculation, worst-case thinking, and distraction from day-to-day work. Over time, this can weaken trust, reduce morale, and lower productivity even when no real negative change has occurred.
3. How often should leaders communicate during continuous change?
There is no fixed rule, but communication should increase with the level of uncertainty. In most change environments, weekly updates or regular check-ins are a minimum. The key is consistency. Teams should know when they will hear from leadership, even if there is no major update.
4. How do personality styles affect communication during change?
People process uncertainty differently based on personality preferences, and tools like DISC help leaders understand these differences. Effective leaders don’t change the core message; they adapt how they communicate it so it resonates with different DISC styles. This ensures the message is understood, reduces friction, and helps teams stay aligned during change.
- https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2007-17840-005
- In the world of DiSC, your fast-moving D styles just want the highlight reel and the i styles want to know the big picture, whereas your S styles need to focus on what’s staying the same and C styles need data and the “why” to feel like they’re standing on solid ground.
- https://assets.kpmg.com/content/dam/kpmg/pdf/2016/05/global-transformation-study-2016.pdf
