A Practical Guide to Sensemaking with Cynefin

Cynefin is most useful when it is treated as a pause, not a categorization exercise.The goal is not to label the situation perfectly.The goal is to choose a decision posture that fits reality.

Here’s my take.

Step 1: Pause at the threshold

Before solutions, planning, or debate, pause long enough to recognize that you are standing at a threshold and ask:

What kind of situation are we actually in?

If the conversation has already moved to what should we do , you are likely past the sensemaking moment.

This pause is not about delay. It is about orientation.

Step 2: Listen for clues in the language being used

The nature of the situation often reveals itself in how people speak about it.

Clear: “We already know how to handle this.”

Complicated: “We need more analysis or expert input.”

Complex: “We don’t fully understand this yet.”

Chaotic: “We need to act now.”

Disorder: “Everyone has a different opinion.”

Pay attention to friction. Persistent disagreement is often a signal that the context itself has not been adequately named.

Step 3: Ask one orienting question per domain

Rather than debating labels, use questions to test your understanding of the situation.

Clear: Do established rules or best practices reliably work here?

Complicated: Would expert analysis meaningfully reduce uncertainty?

Complex: Will understanding only emerge through action and learning?

Chaotic: Is immediate action required to prevent harm or instability

Disorder: Are we talking past one another because we are using different decision logics?

The answers usually clarify the context without forcing consensus.

Step 4: Match the decision posture to the domain

This is where Cynefin becomes practical.

Clear: Apply standards consistently. Optimize for efficiency.

Complicated: Slow down enough to analyze well. Invite expertise.

Complex: Run small, safe-to-fail experiments. Learn before scaling.

Chaotic: Act decisively to stabilize, then reassess.

Disorder: Restore shared sensemaking before making consequential decisions.

Most leadership strain comes not from choosing the wrong option, but from adopting the wrong posture.

Step 5: Revisit the domain as conditions change

Cynefin is not static.

Chaos can stabilize into complexity.Complexity can harden into clearer patterns.Clarity can dissolve back into uncertainty.

Returning to sensemaking is not indecision.It is responsiveness.

Decisions may still be difficult, but they feel grounded rather than forced.And that matters.

The Emu Test (Unofficial, but Reliable)

If you are spending time, money, or energy solving a problem that feels oddly heavy or over-engineered, pause and ask:

Are we trying to build a better enclosure ... When what we really need to do is rehome the emu?

Before you jump in.Before you optimize, analyze, or mobilize.

Ask yourself:

Is there an emu in the room?

Decisions By Design