No lines on the pitch.

No whistle when the rules are broken.
No clarity on what’s fair play, or foul.

It’s Chaos. Confusion. Conflict.
And the game loses all meaning.

Now look at regulation.  We used to push boundaries, test limits, innovate at the edge.
Because the boundaries were there. And the referees were too.

But today?  The lines are vanishing.  The regulators are silent from fear or so far behind the game that they are not even on the pitch.  And no one knows where the rules begin or end.

If there are no boundaries, how do we know how to behave?

In leadership, in business, in society – we need rules we can see, and referees we can trust.

Where’s the referee?  YOU are the referee! As a leader, you can’t just wait for the rules to be redrawn, so you become the referee.  It’s not easy.  But in uncertain times, leadership isn’t about waiting for direction.

Because in the absence of regulation, culture becomes the regulator.
Your values, your expectations, your decisions: they define the rules of the game for your people.   It’s about being the direction.

Now is the moment for real leadership.

• You draw the pitch lines. Set the standards that guide decisions and define what is in or out of bounds.
• You blow the whistle. Call out what is not acceptable. Be consistent. Be visible.
• You embody the rules. Your actions, your culture, your decisions, these are the signals your team will follow.

Because when external regulation falters, culture becomes the regulator.

And culture is built not by posters or platitudes, but by what leaders do every day. What you reward, what you tolerate, what you ignore, these become the rules of the game.

• Create clarity where there is confusion.
• Uphold fairness where there is ambiguity.
• Lead with values where there is no precedent.

You are not just playing the game. You are defining it.

What boundaries are you drawing today?