Key Leadership Quality: Action Orientation
One of the key qualities of a leader is to have an orientation towards action. We can create the best and most detailed plans, but if we fail to act, we have accomplished exactly nothing. Acting can be a scary proposition, but with an appropriate review of the risk involved, we can make the right decision and move forward!
Of course, there is a case to be made against acting too hastily or without properly recognizing risks. We need to balance speed against risk, however, in the end, if we fail to act, we likely fail. Often our experience and business acumen can guide us to know how much assessment is necessary before acting. We are all familiar with the slogan ‘analysis paralysis.’ Those who fall victim to this malady will not achieve the necessary wins to move the operation forward. Of course, we are also familiar with the slogan ‘haste makes waste.’ Those who act without any data or risk review may also cause damage if they are wrong. We need to balance the two.
Balancing Risk and Speed
Often, a quick ‘gut check’ on the consequences of failure may be enough to satisfy us that the risk is low and therefore we must act. Our actions do not need to be perfect, revolutionary, or earth shattering. They simply need to be directionally accurate. One step in the right direction might not fully achieve the desired result, but it will likely be better than standing still.
If a quick risk check reveals that there are indeed major potential consequences in a course of action, then we have a number of risk evaluation tools in the arsenal. Choose one, evaluate the risk formally, and then make a decision! The decision may be to move forward or it may be that the risk is too great and another path should be sought. Either way, at least a decision has been reached and the team has avoided paralysis.
One of my favorite quotes from history to apply to business when the team is experiencing paralysis is
“Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!”
Many people (perhaps more so in the US) may have heard this quote but don’t know its context. The back story is from the US Civil War in 1864. As Admiral Farragut was preparing to lead his Federal ships to attack Mobile Bay Harbor in Alabama, he found that the Rebels had mined the harbor to thwart attacks. Mines were referred to as torpedoes then. The Admiral realized that the objective needed to be accomplished and that the mines represented a risk he was willing to accept. His team had done their best to layout a plan that would minimize the effect of the mines, and had reason to believe that many of the mines might be compromised due to the length of time they had been under water.
Based on this assessment of risk, the Admiral organized his ships and attacked the port. A mine detonated and sank one of his leading ships, but the enemy cannons on shore were also a risk and he needed to get past the mines to get past the shore batteries.
The Admiral therefore stood proudly on the deck of his flagship and urged his fleet forward to capture the port with his famous line “damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” (Actually - the real quote was more involved and nautical in nature, but has been paraphrased by history as written above).
It is notable that taking the port helped strangle the Confederacy’s supply lines and contributed to ending the war less than a year later. In this case, history might be a great deal different had the Admiral decided to stop the attack when his first ship was sunk by a mine.
Conclusion
Most of us will not face the type of problem that Admiral Farragut faced, where human lives are in the balance. Certainly if we do, great care in assessing risk is needed. Most of the time, we simply need to consider the situation, do a gut check, choose a path forward, and go! As the results unfold from our action, we can decide if the action was directionally correct, and take additional action.
If we do nothing, we will likely accomplish nothing.
