4) Think in Systems
Why: Every decision affects other parts of the system.
Consider Clare, a new portfolio leader at ABC, who made it her mission to “think in systems” every day.
Rather than reacting to surface-level setbacks, Clare routinely mapped how changes in one project might impact others, spotting feedback loops and hidden dependencies. This habit helped her anticipate downstream effects—like how a resource reallocation in customer support could slow a product launch—and empowered her to propose solutions that benefited the entire organization.
Over time, Clare’s systems thinking approach became second nature, enabling her to steer ABC toward cohesive, long-term success rather than isolated gains.
