When Karine Clauwaert, CEO of biotech startup Abscint, recently shared her struggles with conflicting advice—"move faster" versus "slow down and be cautious"—she touched on something fundamental that leaders across all sectors face daily. But here's what makes her insight so valuable: she's not looking for the "right" answer between two extremes. She's discovered something more nuanced, more dynamic—a way of navigating that doesn't require choosing one shore or the other.

This is the essence of paradoxical leadership, and it's time we stopped thinking about leadership challenges as problems to solve and started seeing them as waves to surf.

The Trap of the Either/Or

We've been trained to think in binaries. Fast or slow. Cautious or bold. Listen to everyone or trust your gut. Delegate or stay involved. Innovate or stabilize. Our language, our decision-making frameworks, even our performance reviews often force us into these false dichotomies.

But the reality Karine describes—where well-intentioned advisors offer contradictory guidance, each valid from their own perspective—reveals something crucial: these aren't opposite ends of a continuum where you need to find the "right" spot in the middle. They're paradoxes. Both truths exist simultaneously, and the challenge isn't to choose between them or even to balance them. It's to surf them.

Leadership as Wave Selection

Think about a surfer approaching the ocean. They don't choose between big waves and small waves, between challenging and easy, between known and unknown. They read the ocean, assess their own capacity, consider what they're trying to accomplish, and select which waves to take—and how to take them.

Some days, the surfer paddles hard into a massive wave they've ridden a hundred times before, relying on familiar patterns and muscle memory. Other days, they choose a smaller, unpredictable wave precisely because it will teach them something new. Sometimes they let perfect waves pass by because the timing isn't right. And occasionally, they commit to a wave that terrifies them because they know they're ready to grow.

The magic isn't in the wave or the board alone—it's in the dynamic synergy between them. The wave provides power and direction; the board provides control and speed. The surfer doesn't control the wave, but they're far from passive. They position themselves, they read the energy, they make split-second adjustments.

This is what Karine has learned to do with the paradoxes of leadership.

The Paradoxes You're Already Surfing

Let's name some of the waves that leaders face daily:

The Paradoxical Position: How Surfers Really Lead

So what does it actually mean to surf these paradoxes rather than try to solve them?

First, you recognize them as paradoxes. Stop asking "Which advice is right?" Start asking "What wave am I on right now, and what does this particular wave require?"

Second, you develop your reading skills. Karine mentions weighing options with "a few key people who see the whole picture." These are your wave-reading companions—people who can see patterns you might miss, who bring complementary perspectives, who help you assess the energy and timing of the situation.

Third, you commit fully to your chosen line. Once you've selected your wave and your approach, you paddle hard. Hesitation in surfing creates wipeouts. Karine describes this as staying on course long enough to avoid stagnation. This isn't stubbornness—it's the confidence to follow through once you've made an informed choice.

Fourth, you stay in constant micro-adjustment. Watch a surfer closely—they're never static. They're continuously reading the wave, shifting weight, adjusting position. This is different from "changing course too often." It's about maintaining your essential direction while responding to immediate conditions.

Fifth, you build your capacity over time. You don't start by surfing the most dangerous waves. You develop judgment about which waves to take based on growing self-awareness and accumulated experience. Some paradoxes you're ready to surf now. Others you need to practice for.

The Courage to Stay in the Water

Here's what Karine's post ultimately reveals: the courage of leadership isn't in having all the answers or even in making perfect decisions. It's in staying in the water. It's in continuing to paddle out, to read the waves, to commit to your line, to learn from wipeouts, and to appreciate the exhilaration when you catch the energy just right.

The well-intentioned advisors will keep coming. The contradictory guidance won't stop. The paradoxes won't resolve themselves into neat, binary choices. And that's exactly as it should be.

Because the moment you think you've found the single right answer, the wave has changed beneath you.

The question isn't whether to be fast or slow, open or decisive, consistent or adaptable. The question is: What wave are you on right now, and how will you ride it?