When Success Leaves No Trace

This week, I’ve been thinking about the wins we don’t talk about—mostly because there’s nothing to point to.

There’s the story that never became a headline. The quote that didn’t go viral because we helped reframe it in context. The news cycle that could’ve been a firestorm but ended up as just another blip in a broader trend. These are real wins—but they leave no trace.

Other functions can point to the trial that got enrolled or the policy that launched. We have plenty of tangible goals too, but we also spend a huge part of our time putting out fires—or better yet, stopping them from starting in the first place.

So how do we show value when the best outcome is nothing visible at all?

It’s a hard question, and one we don’t ask enough. But it’s part of why communications is so critical—and why it’s time we start giving weight to these invisible successes.