Is This a Muddy Puddle or a Dirty Window?
The Question That Changed How I Lead
The first time I heard the phrase was in a James Clear newsletter.
He asked a simple question: Is this problem a muddy puddle… or a dirty window?
Giving language to it changed the way I lead, the way I mother, and the way I move through my days.
Because before I had that language? I fixed too quickly. I took ownership of things that weren’t mine. I treated every inconvenience like it required immediate intervention.
And ambitious women are especially prone to this because we are competent, we are capable, we can figure things out. So people bring us their problems (often with urgency) and we jump.
But not all problems are created equal…
The Muddy Puddle
A muddy puddle is loud. It splashes. It looks messy. But give it some sunlight and it disappears.
At work, a deal that’s causing a headache can feel like a five-alarm fire. Slack messages. Email chains. “What are we going to do?” energy. And then… you give it a day. Or two.
The client resolves it. The budget shifts. The deal closes. Or it dies.
It was a puddle.
The Dirty Window
A dirty window is different.
A dirty window doesn’t splash. It distorts. It lingers. And if you ignore it, it compounds.
A rep who isn’t up to snuff. A misalignment you keep dancing around. A standard you quietly lower because confrontation feels hard. Leave that in the seat without support and it degrades client experience, team culture, and company performance.
That’s not a puddle. That’s a dirty window.
And dirty windows require cleaning. Action (offten continued action).
Don’t Mistake Motion for Impact
The maturity isn’t in solving everything — It’s in discerning what actually needs to be solved.
Because the compounding cost of reacting to puddles like they’re windows is exhaustion.
You mistake motion for impact. You burn energy on things that would’ve evaporated. You rob yourself of the bandwidth required to clean what truly matters.
Now, when something flies my way, I pause:
Is this loud… or is it lasting?
Is this emotional… or structural?
Is this temporary… or degrading something important?
And then I act accordingly.
That pause is power.
Ambition without discernment is just over-functioning. Ambition with discernment is leadership.
My Wish For You
My wish for you is that when something lands on your desk, in your inbox, or in your kitchen… you have the regulation to ask yourself what kind of problem it is before jumping in. The maturity to discern which it is. And the mental fortitude to take on as many dirty windows as it takes to live your best life.
