What’s Important in the Invisible Middle?

My clients often use the questions “What worked? What didn’t?” as their improvement model. It sounds efficient, right?

But when we ask these questions, we force reflection into two extremes: success or failure. We miss the invisible middle, the place where there is so much potential to move from okay, or even good, to truly thriving.

Last week, I was in a leadership team meeting. We covered the agenda, decisions were made, we ended on time. No one stormed out or dramatically quit. If we used the traditional model, “what worked” would be everything above.

And “what didn’t work”? Honestly, nothing obvious. By most business standards, it was a win. But that kind of reflection does not surface meaningful insight.

Because the truth is, most things work... mostly.

I prefer to ask: What worked well? What could work better? Notice the subtle shift.

In this meeting, what worked well was already clear. But “what could work better” would have surfaced the real opportunities. There were moments when someone hesitated before speaking and then didn’t. We could explore what would have helped them speak up, and what we lost by not hearing their perspective: risk awareness, buy-in, or the innovative idea that changes everything.

There was a tension point that got smoothed over instead of explored. What could have worked better was asking deeper questions, tolerating a little discomfort, and staying with the issue instead of moving on too quickly, even if it slowed us down. 

Nothing was broken, or "didn't work," but something was sitting in the middle. And that middle is where most leaders live. That 80 percent in between is where nuance lives. It is where energy dips slightly, trust is almost built, or alignment never quite locks in. And it is exactly where growth either happens or dies.

There is another benefit to this shift. “What doesn’t work?” can trigger defensiveness. It signals failure. “What could work better?” invites ownership. It assumes competence and still calls us higher.

Most leaders do not fail because things are broken. They plateau because things are good enough. The invisible middle feels safe and comfortable. But if we never examine it, we slowly normalize mediocrity.

So here is a small experiment for your next meeting. Instead of asking, “Did that work?” ask: What worked well? What could work better?

You may be surprised at what you discover. Let me know how it goes.