When was the last time you felt both excited and scared at the same time? That fizzy knot in your stomach before stepping onto a field, walking on stage, or making a big life decision. I’ve learned over the years that those butterflies aren’t just nerves; they’re the collision of fear and opportunity. And in projects, just like in life, fear is usually what holds people back.
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When I started my business with Adrian, excitement and fear wrestled with each other daily. On one hand, there was the thrill of shaping our own future. On the other, the dread of failure, of not being able to pay the bills, or worse, embarrassing ourselves and having to crawl back to where we started. What helped us move forward was reframing fear as risk. Fear is risk dressed in emotion. Once we started asking, “What’s the worst that could happen? Can we deal with it?” we were able to break things down and find a path forward. If we couldn’t manage a risk but it was unlikely, we parked it. If we couldn’t manage it and it was likely, that’s where we dug in. This shift from fear to risk gave us the confidence to act.
Fast forward to today, and I spend most of my time dealing with risks that stop other people in their tracks. Cost blowouts, timeline delays, poor quality, health and safety issues, and not knowing who to trust—these fears can stall projects before they even start. But when you strip away the emotion, you see them for what they are: risks that can be identified, planned for, and managed. Once you do that, you unlock momentum. And in projects, momentum is everything.
Risk isn’t just a hurdle—it reveals what really matters. Digging into risks forces you to ask better questions. Is the design fit for purpose? Will it stand the test of time? Are the right people at the table? Talking openly about risk also builds trust, because nothing erodes confidence faster than nasty surprises. When you name risks, plan for them, and manage them transparently, you take away fear and give everyone peace of mind. That’s why I often say managing risk isn’t just about saving money, it’s about emotional relief.
I’ll give you an example. On one project involving PFAS contamination, we stepped into an environment already under public scrutiny. The risks were enormous—health concerns, regulatory pressure, reputational damage, budget uncertainty. We didn’t need to be the technical experts, but we did need to ensure the real risks were identified, owned, and managed. By coordinating consultants, communicating clearly, and keeping everyone focused, we helped turn paralysis into progress.
Another project was the upgrade of a wharf to handle a fleet of new vessels. The ships were already being built overseas, and the facility had to be ready on time or the financial fallout would be huge. The risks ranged from siloed departments and scope gaps to the challenge of keeping operations running during construction. At one point, a designer overseas was becoming unresponsive, which could have derailed a critical piece of work. By sheer coincidence, I was in Sweden for a family holiday. I detoured to their office, had a coffee, and smoothed out the relationship. Not all risk mitigation is complicated. Sometimes it’s just about showing up, listening, and building trust.
Then there was an asbestos remediation project that nearly collapsed before it got going. The process designed in the planning stage failed almost immediately. We halted the works, gathered 40 stakeholders in a room, and reframed the challenge as a problem to be solved together, not a blame game. That shift in attitude allowed us to redesign the process, halve the costs, and save the project. What could have been a disaster became one of the most rewarding outcomes we’ve achieved.
Across all these experiences, I’ve learned that while tools and processes are important, they’re not enough. What really matters is attitude. At Switch, we build our approach on three values: care, challenge, and integrity. Care means being emotionally invested—sweating when things go wrong and celebrating when they go right. Challenge means asking the hard questions early, even when it’s uncomfortable. Integrity means doing the right thing even when it costs you. Without those values, the best tools in the world won’t help.
Instinct also plays a big role. Too often, I see risk registers overloaded with every imaginable “what if.” That might look thorough, but it buries the real issues. I encourage people to trust their gut. What keeps you awake at night? What makes your stomach drop? That’s usually where the real risks lie. Humans have survived for millennia by honing our instincts—ignoring them in a project meeting makes no sense.
At its heart, project management is about guiding clients through unfamiliar territory. They’re the heroes of their own story, but like any good hero, they need a guide.
At its heart, project management is about guiding clients through unfamiliar territory. They’re the heroes of their own story, but like any good hero, they need a guide. My job is to help them confront their fears, see them as risks, and then take the steps that turn risk into reward. It’s part science, part art, and it depends as much on trust and attitude as it does on spreadsheets or registers.
So if you take one thing from my reflections, let it be this: fear doesn’t have to hold you back. Convert it into risk, manage it with clarity, and you’ll find momentum where others hesitate. That’s when projects move forward, and that’s when the biggest rewards come.
If any of this struck a chord, I’d love to continue the conversation. Let’s grab a coffee or catch up at the next Masterclass—I’d be keen to hear how you’re tackling fear and risk in your world.