Fighting VUCA with VUCA

The term VUCA is more real today than ever. But implement it positively.

The term VUCA was coined post the Cold War by the US military to describe the move from a bi polar stable world (US vs. soviets) to a multi polar world (dozens of enemies ) of conflict. It applies more so today as volatility, uncertainty , complexity and ambiguity are rising constantly. They arise because we enjoy less control and more uncertainty in our actions today than ever before. But there is a positive VUCA that can help you manage this. The same acronym works for Vision, Understanding, clarity and agility.

Volatility is best dealt with via focus and vision. A clear end game that allows you to ignore distractions and remain resolute in the face of multiple and rapid changes.

Understanding cause and effect and root causes allows one to better cope with uncertainty. Once you understand the system you can predict the consequence of actions.

Clarity of tactics and creating optionality when blended with simple communication helps to create and make choices which addresses complexity.

Agility in being able to rapidly change course and to speed up execution helps you deal with ambiguity. The latter two speak to experimentation and learning agility. Combined this allows one to become more resilient in an increasingly threatening world.

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