I had a great interview with Alain Hunkins while traveling in the US, which was recently published in Forbes. Our conversation centred on a simple but often uncomfortable truth about leadership: the best leaders do not wait until they feel ready. They move, and they figure things out along the way.

Seeing the piece published really brought home the work we have been doing at TAB over the past few years. It brought to light that building a business in a fast-moving, highly regulated lending market is not about having perfect information. It’s about making sensible decisions early, learning quickly, and staying adaptable.

I wanted to take this opportunity to pull out a few points from our discussion that really resonated with me, and I think will resonate with anyone leading a business in uncertain conditions.

Why Waiting for the ‘Right Time’ Is a Trap

One of the most important things I’ve learned the hard way is that waiting for clarity usually creates the opposite. The longer you pause, the more pressure builds. Decisions stack up, teams hesitate, and those pivotal opportunities quietly drift past.

In property finance, uncertainty is a given. Interest rates will definitely change, regulations will evolve, and the market sentiment will shift. If you choose to only act when everything feels comfortable, you will rarely act at all.

For me, leadership has become about accepting that discomfort. I don’t mean reckless decision-making, but informed, decisive movement. I choose to take a step, to see what happens, and to adjust from there so that I achieve the best outcome. Action has a way of revealing information that spreadsheets and forecasts simply can’t.

How Early Action Creates Better Insight

Earlier on in our interview, we talked about how early decisions often feel riskier than they actually are. A good example was our move at TAB to link lending more closely to the Bank of England base rate. At the time, it was not the familiar or ‘safe’ option, and some questioned whether the market was ready for it. Others decided to wait and see how things played out.

By moving early, we learned quickly and adapted to what we discovered to be true. We saw how clients responded, where questions came up, and how expectations were shifting in real time. That insight proved to be extremely valuable. A much better course of action taken than sitting on the sidelines watching the market change around us.

The takeaway for me was clear: movement creates data, and data, even when imperfect, beats assumptions every time.

Giving People Enough Context to Move

One of the things that often slows businesses down is not capability. It’s uncertainty about priorities. When people don’t know what matters the most, what moves the needle, they naturally hesitate.

This was something I noticed early on at TAB. People were capable, motivated, and engaged, but sometimes they paused because they did not have enough context to act confidently.

As a result, I simplified how I communicate. Every week, I share a short update with the whole team highlighting what is important right now. What has changed and where we need to pay attention. No over-engineering. Just clarity and focus.

That change has made a real difference in the company. When people understand the bigger picture, they do not need constant approval to get things moving. They make better decisions, faster, even when the future is not crystal clear.

Why Momentum Depends on Honesty

Speed without honesty does not last long.

I’ve noticed that people have a tendency to soften bad news or avoid raising concerns, which results in problems surfacing way too late. I have found that one of the most important questions a leader can ask is a simple one: ‘What am I not seeing?’

But asking is not enough. How you react is what truly matters. If honesty is met with defensiveness, it disappears. If it is met with appreciation, it spreads.

I make it a habit to thank people, publicly when appropriate, for pointing out blind spots or challenging assumptions. It sends a clear signal that candour is valued, and when truth flows freely, our collective learning accelerates.

Confidence Follows Action, Not the Other Way Round

I think the biggest misconception about leadership is that confidence comes first. However, in reality, I find that confidence usually shows up after you have acted, learned, and adjusted.

You do not move because you are confident.

You become confident because you choose to move.

That mindset has constructively shaped how I approach leadership today. At TAB, we do not aim to eliminate uncertainty. We accept it, we work within it, and keep moving forward.

The simple fact is that the environment will always change. The leaders who make progress are not the ones with all the answers upfront. They are the ones willing to take that first imperfect step, to make mistakes first and to pass on that knowledge learned to better improve outcomes.

For me, leadership has never been about eliminating uncertainty. It’s about recognising it and moving forward despite it, to trust that clarity will follow.

Thank you Alain and thank you Forbes

You can read my full interview with Alain at Forbes here: ‘Why Great Leaders Move Before They Feel Ready’. I really enjoyed my discussion with Alain and look forward to many more. If you want to be first to hear about these events, please join my network, and if you’d like to discuss more topics on property finance, investment, entrepreneurship, then please get in touch.

If you have a loan you’d like approved, please use my quick tap loan approval form to get you started. I look forward to hearing and/or working with you.

Duncan