Staying Proactive vs. Reactive
Yesterday a situation arose with a client. We were talking, and the client was duly upset about a disputed matter. We talked through the issue, and she wanted to talk with the other person involved. I told her to let it sit overnight and we would address it in the morning when cooler heads prevailed. As a manager, the "let-cooler-heads-prevail" philosophy is a good strategy to adopt. Automatic reactions to situation produce more automatic reactions, and misunderstandings can grow from what could have been a much more manageable issue into a major fallout. I do think there is a difference though between proactive management and "simmering" leadership. Being proactive is working out of Stephen Covey's idea about the 4th quadrant. Simmering on issues is a whole other thing in business we'll call "boiling pot" management. Boiling pots don't react or even behave proactively. Simmering pots boil and boil and boil until the issue spills over and bur...