The New Guidance: On Waiting, Agency, and the Clock That May Have Changed
There is a phrase that moves through complex organizations and federal agencies like weather. You have heard it. You have probably said it. You may have said it this week.
“We are waiting for the new guidance.”
It sounds responsible. Prudent. The kind of thing a careful professional says when they want to signal that they are not acting rashly, that they are giving the system time to clarify itself before they move. In many environments, across most of a federal career, that instinct is correct. Budget cycles reset. Administrations change. Bad initiatives exhaust their sponsors. Waiting for clarity is often the right call.
