My grandad was a train driver, back when steam trains ruled the rails.
 
His engine shed was in Lancaster and a lot of his Summer was spent carrying the population of Yorkshire towns and villages back and forth to Blackpool on their respective ‘wakes weeks’ – historically the week when the millworkers would travel to the seaside for their annual holiday, when the whole of one town and it's surrounding area would board trains together and head for the coast. 
 
I spent several happy hours on the engine footplate with him, his stories were glorious, as were the breakfasts he cooked on his shovel in the boiler firebox. He taught me so much about the rules of the railway and particularly the critical code of the signalling system.
 
There were two key signals for the drivers to observe, each with its own clear purpose.
 
The red straight edged signal, when up, gave confirmation to safely proceed, but only through the immediate section of track to the next signal.
 
The yellow v-cut signal, then gave the driver early warning on the position of the next red signal. It was called the distant signal and was significantly important to the drivers, in managing their speed and planning the onward progress of their journey.
 
It is interesting to consider how often today do we all feel the occasional, unexpected stop and start, as we move from one red signal to another?
 
Seven decades later, I still reflect on my grandad’s simple rules of railway navigation and see the benefit of a similar signal system being in play in the client organisations we now work with.
 
The first stage of our discussions – finding balance - involves us helping leaders clarify, not only where they want to go, but also honest and open discussions about who they are (their values and principles), what they do (their unique offer to others) and why they do it (the purpose that drives them forward).
 
The balance framework provides clear guidance and direction, acting as a reliable signalling system, to help leaders and their teams, safely and confidently, navigate the choices and decisions for the track ahead,
 
The train drivers of my grandad’s era similarly planned their journeys by relying on those simple metal signs.  Signals that informed them it was safe to proceed or possibly to adjust their speed, or pause, or indeed, move to a different track altogether.
 
Leaders we work with often say that they struggle with moving forward with as much clarity and confidence as they once had and can sometimes feel that they do jerk from one position or goal to another, without necessarily feeling that they, or their teams are securely heading in the right direction.
 
We help our clients have open and honest discussions about the realities they face on the potential track ahead, acknowledging the consistent unknowns associated with the plans they make and the priorities they identify.
 
Rather than fear what’s ahead, or be wary of change or disruption, we help them to stay connected to who they are, what they do and why they do it, and use it as a reliable and consistent signalling mechanism for their teams.

It enables them to stay focused on what matters most.
 
Embedding this as part of day-to-day dialogue and decisions, allows my grandad’s yellow sign to rise. It signals reassurance that we can confidently go ahead as planned until we reach the next moment, much further down the track, where we may discover a challenge, we need to respond to, or an opportunity to move us forward faster.
 
Whether your organisation has a short- or longer-term strategy, being able to react to the current reality is much easier when you have a clear and trusted signalling system, to guide you through each section of your journey.
 
Wherever those rusty signs my grandad religiously followed are now resting, their purpose lives on today, inspiring our balance conversations and the art of successfully moving forward.