Future

Or to put it another way, see and manage the context, don't be sucked into the content. It takes practice but it is an essential leadership skill.

From Warren Bennis:

I tend to think of the differences between leaders and managers as the differences between those who master the context and those who surrender to it.

And from Heifitz and Linksy:

The ability to maintain perspective in the midst of action is critical. Any military officer knows the importance of maintaining the capacity for reflection, especially in the "fog of war." Great athletes must simultaneously play the game and observe it as a whole. We call this skill "getting off the dance floor and going to the balcony," an image that captures the mental activity of stepping back from the action and asking, "What's really going on here?" But taking a balcony perspective is extremely tough to do when you're fiercely engaged down below, being pushed and pulled by the events and people around you—and doing some pushing and pulling of your own. You'll also need to observe your own actions; seeing yourself objectively as you look down from the balcony is perhaps the hardest task of all.