Managers Have To Initiate Swift Action

Dreaming is an excellent thing to do. A most productive exercise. Why? You can actually manifest outcomes for yourself.  Yes but, it is not the only thing to do. It can not work wonders.

Results are only built on real action. Dreaming and manifesting will not do it. It would be nice if it were so, but it simply is not.

On top of that, it seems that many people are concerned overly much about being mistake free. Instead, many just sit and think about it.

Most likely no result will occur for these people. Even no action does have its place.

Sometimes all of our digital capabilities makes this issues even worse. It allows us to spend even more time on these “non-result" producing efforts.

Let's talk about the second world war. During it a submarine captain had to be very cautious. He had to sit, wait, plot and plan. Why? He had to make certain his sub was perfectly aimed to the target before he fired a torpedo. Long hours and days were vital for survival. His torpedo was really just a big bullet. Just like a rifle, you have to aim before firing.

In the same circumstances, you had better do the same thing. A terrific illustration of this is in this management short course.

A modern torpedo is not that way. It can be guided.

This a very good thing. Now, the captain can almost fire and forget. He does not need to be extra careful about aiming before he fires. No time available for planning.

The captain must fire quickly and guide the missile afterwards. His inaction can spell doom. He must act now.

Think about the difference. In WW2 the captain had to wait. Now, he has to act. The environment dictates the difference. Why? If he fired too soon, he would likely miss and expend his resources in a futile cause.

Today's captain has exactly the opposite situation. He must fire now. What caused this big turn-around? If he takes the time to think, plan and study, he is likely to lose his ship and all the crew to the enemy.

In business today, far too many are stuck using WW2 methods. Today's business people don't see the danger of procrastination.

Today we live in a much faster world. Like the moderm sub captain. Thankfully not actually live threatening, but dangerous nonetheless. Of course, it will not cost you your life, but it could cost the business's life.

You have to act. Your delay can be costly. So, act and adjust while underway. No time to plan.

I find myself in a discussion about this whole thing a lot. I recently had a conversation on point. She had an employee not taking any forward steps. She complained about too much "getting ready." It seems this very bright person did not seem to get anything meaningful done. Everything was always on hold.

I remembered a story and told here about a young deer hunter. He failed to get a deer. Instead he brought home a little tiny rabbit. He never saw a deer. So, he shot a rabbit.

The family had dinner instead of an excuse about no deers in sight.

Too many people would bring home a story. And, you can not eat drama!

Ongoing Learning

"When you are green you are growing, but when you are ripe you are starting to rot." That was one of the many quotes of Ray Kroc, the MacDonald's chain founder. I believe it totally. It is a natural law of the universe.

Only he know what he was refering to for sure. For me, it means you have to keep learning, keep experiencing new things and continually use your imagination. Healthy mental growth is a must. We need to keep feeding it. Like most things in nature. Lack of use means the end is nearby.

A simple concept to accept really. 

Kids know the value of this idea. They all soak up new information and new experiences. Actually, it does not have to be new. They will go over the same stuff day after day. Never tiring of it. They love the mental stimulation. That's why they go over and over the same material. Many understand it totally first-time, but that does not stop them repeating it. They're a perfect example of being “green” and growing.

Receiving new input or material on a new topic does contribute to mental growth. That's a wonderful place to begin this new journey. This exposure to new material is an excellent catalyst for growth. It’s addictive to many.

Use a young person as your role model for this exercise. 

You really want to be as curious as a little child about everything. Remember, you had the skill to do this at one time in your lives. It's time for you to go back to the level you enjoyed as a child.

Your mind will grow very fast as you learn new information and become exposed to new material. It is very healthy to be in this learning environment. This is the result you want to achieve.

Become a continuous learner right away. There is excellent online management training to help.

Let's discuss a couple of additional issues.

The first one is learning something new and exciting, but not taking any action with this new knowledge. It is a variation of an issue I have written about before. A small problem gets very big when no action is taken.

It's a big issue when we think we know "everything there is to know" about a topic. This is a very big problem for so-called experts or gurus. These can be the craftsperson at the top of their trade or a senior manager in an organization. Some trade associations try to fix this. Many of them have minimum numbers of educational hours every year. This additional education is designed to keep people from getting stale.

You could end up being in this “I know it already” predicament.

So what's a great way to know if you are vulnerable? If you ever find yourself verbalizing, “I know all about that”, that's a hint. This is a great limitation that's self-inflicted.

Take some time to think about how you respond in certain circumstances. For example, if someone starts to tell you about something and you interrupt saying, “Yep, I know.” Generally you'll cut off any more input. You have stopped communications.

Or, you will say "I know" or "I have heard this all before" in your mind and stop listening.

I like to think of myself is a perpetual student Many people think of me as being an expert in my fields of business development and management training. I think that's great they feel that way, but I prefer to think myself a student. I focus on attending any educational than I can. Whenever possible I seek out and talk to others in my field.

Hopefully, you'll find yourself adopting a similar approach to the one I take.

Don't sit around too long. Stretch your mind. Find a big issue. Click on this great article. It will help you out in your quest to stretch your mind.