We’re business builders.
We take initiative.
That often isn’t even a debate within us.
We simply do it.
But there are many people
who don’t want to take initiative
at all.
One of the theories
behind the low vaccination rate in the US,
for example,
is
taking or not taking the vaccine
is a very important decision
and many people don’t want to be
responsible for it.
They don’t want to be
the person
who gets it wrong.
They don’t want to take initiative.
As Seth Godin
shares
“On one hand,
giving someone else authority
over our effort
is challenging,
because they might not be aware
of how much we have in reserve
or what else we’ve got going on.
But the alternative
is emotionally taxing:
Taking initiative.
Instead of calling it
“taking initiative”
perhaps it would be more accurate
to say “giving initiative.”
Because it’s in short supply
and we need more.”
As we build our businesses,
we’ll need to align
with people
sporting all sorts of levels
of initiative,
from those requiring instructions
for even the most basic tasks
to people who thrive
working on their own.
We have to place the right people
with the right levels of initiative
in the right roles
to be successful.
Look for initiative.
Learn how to recognize it,
how to test for it.