LEADERSHIP is rarely about choosing between right and wrong.
More often, leaders must navigate competing priorities, values and expectations, making difficult decisions when there is no obvious answer.
This tension forms the heart of University of Cyberjaya (UoC) pro-chancellor Tan Sri Dr R. Palan’s latest book, Stuck in the Middle.
The book challenges the conventional view that being “stuck in the middle” represents indecision or uncertainty.
Instead, Palan described the “middle” as a space where competing truths, values and priorities converge, serving as the ground where sound judgements are made.
The book is based on an 18-episode podcast series hosted by Palan between last year and January, titled “Stuck in the Middle with Palan.”
Palan said the series featured leaders and experts from government, business, academia, healthcare, finance, education and civil society discussing the challenges of making decisions when competing demands must be reconciled and certainty was impossible.
Building on those conversations, he said the book explores how individuals and organisations navigate uncertainty and complexity while remaining grounded in their values and responsibilities.
“The most difficult decisions are rarely between what is clearly right and wrong.
“More often, we find ourselves between two legitimate positions, each with its own consequences.
“That is where judgement becomes critical.
“Being in the middle can be uncomfortable, but it is also where we learn to understand different perspectives and make decisions with courage and humility,” he said at the book launch at the UoC campus in Selangor.
In pursuing that middle ground, he developed a framework that forms part of the book’s approach to decision-making amid competing considerations.
However, Palan said the book was not intended as an academic text despite its theoretical foundation.
“It is written for everyone.
“The ideas developed in the book and lessons from my podcast conversations can be applied not only to public and professional life, but also to everyday personal decisions,” he said.
Palan said the book could also help young people develop wiser decision-making skills.
“Young people should be equipped to formulate questions that can guide them through an unpredictable future.
“What we want to do is help them prepare their own questions so that they will find their own answers for a world that none of us can predict.
“That, I think, is far more valuable than leaving an inheritance for them,” he said.
Stuck in the Middle is Palan’s 22nd book.
He dedicated it to his wife, Puan Sri Kamu Palan, whom he described as having spent a lifetime quietly living in the middle – balancing family dynamics as well as managing work and family commitments.
The book is priced at RM50 and can be purchased online at www.umpress.com.my
All proceeds from sales will be donated to educational charities.
