MamaWritesSpells

A more honest conversation about work, friction, and reality.

Let’s start in the middle of the mess, because that’s where most work actually happens.

Someone’s frustrated. A deadline slipped. A project feels heavier than it should. And almost immediately—almost reflexively—the question gets asked:

“Do we need more training?”

Maybe.
But… probably not.

Here’s the thing we don’t like to say out loud (because it makes meetings awkward): most work problems are not skill problems. They’re not intelligence gaps or motivation failures or a lack of grit. They’re clarity problems. Structural problems. Communication problems. The kind that quietly pile up while everyone keeps trying harder, faster, louder.

And then we blame the people inside the system instead of the system itself.
Classic move.

I’ve watched wildly competent people trip over the same invisible obstacles again and again. Not because they didn’t know how to do the work—but because no one could answer basic questions without opening six tabs, two Slack threads, and a Google Doc last edited in 2019.

What does “done” mean here?
Who actually decides this?
Why are we revisiting a decision we already made?
And—my personal favorite—wait, wasn’t this someone else’s call?

That’s not a skills issue. That’s fog.

We’ve built workplaces that confuse motion with progress. Meetings that exist because no one wrote the thing down. Processes held together with vibes and good intentions. Then, when people struggle, we hand them a course. Or a productivity app. Or a webinar titled something like “Managing Ambiguity in a Fast-Paced Environment.” (Translation: good luck.)

Here’s the kicker—most people already know what they’re doing. What they don’t know is what matters, what’s decided, and what they’re allowed to stop worrying about.

And honestly? That’s exhausting.

The fix is rarely flashy. No rebrand. No “transformation initiative.” It’s boring, unsexy stuff: deciding once and documenting it. Naming owners. Reducing choices. Saying, “This is good enough,” and meaning it. Creating fewer handoffs. Fewer interpretations. Fewer psychic guesses about what leadership really wants.

When clarity shows up, performance usually follows. Not because people suddenly became better—but because the ground stopped shifting under their feet.

So if your team is struggling, maybe don’t ask how to make them sharper. Ask what’s making their work heavier than it needs to be.

And then—this part matters—fix that.

(Yes, it will feel too simple. That’s how you know you’re probably close.)