To be Bold You Must be Willing to Lose to Win by Marc LeVine

Being BOLD can often be a double-edge sword. A BOLD leader is an excellent critical thinker, who can conduct a quick situation analysis and silence self-limiting thoughts to make snap decisions. These are often decisions that others had either not thought of or may have immediately dismissed as being too over-the-top. It is just these kinds of bold, over-the-top decisions that have made history, stealing victory from the jaws of defeat. Looking for a new job??Visit?www.themosystems.com/careers

Bold Actions Have Been a Mixed Bag

Think about the greatest battles ever fought and how they were won. Someone had a wild idea to build a huge, hollow wooden horse and roll it into the City of Troy filled with 40 Greek warriors. No doubt, when the idea was announced there must have been someone who remarked – “are you crazy?”?The idea was bold, and the execution was flawless...and successful.

George Custer was not as lucky at the Battle of Little Big Horn. His impulsiveness and recklessness got the better of him. He went into battle unaware of the number of Indigenous people fighting under the command of Sitting Bull. Custer divided his more than six hundred men into four groups to attack from different sides. Custer led one group of 210 men. Three of the four groups were late on the scene. Custer and his 250 men went up against three thousand tribal warriors. In less than an hour, the Sioux and Cheyenne had won the Battle of the Little Bighorn, killing Custer and every one of his men.

Had Custer pushed across the Little Bighorn River and captured the noncombatants, he might have achieved a victory—a costly one, to be sure, but one that could have burnished his fame as an Indigenous fighter, made him a hero and kept him alive. It was not to be. Custer’s bold attack lacked the necessary intelligence and - perhaps – some deeper thinking and less impulsivity on his part to succeed. Custer also never really understood nor respected the will, pride, and ferocity of native American warriors he was up against. And he paid for this with his own life and the lives of so many of his men.

Winning Boldly

There have been a number of business successes brought on by the bold actions of business leaders over the years.

Henry Ford’s decision to double the wages of his workers enabled him to attract the talent he needed and helped ensure a class of worker who could afford the very products they were building. And, how about the Apple board’s decision to bring back Steve Jobs, after firing him a decade earlier? That one led to amazing product innovation and to the creation of one of the most valuable companies in the world.

In a recent study, 97% of business leaders surveyed said they are confident in the decisions they make, but 51% often or sometimes experience decision-making “impasses,” citing lack of data, insights, and inability to accurately measure outcomes. This makes the case that making bold decisions should never overlook the dangers of impulsiveness. Being successfully bold relies on the ability to process situations quickly, calling upon all available data, experience, and a high degree of creativity. Bravery is also a necessary ingredient of boldness.

You must be willing to lose to win. You must also be able to find peace after accepting losses knowing you took chances others would not take and did so having done everything you possible could to come out on top.

The Author

Listen to Marc's latest interview on The AutomationBlog Podcast with Shawn Tierney.

Marc LeVine?is a graduate of Syracuse (NY) University with a degree in Industrial Psychology, Marc is currently Talent Acquisitions and Learning and Development Lead at Thermo Systems. He is the recipient of the Excellence in Talent Acquisitions Award from HR Awards in 2021. His prior employment includes senior Human Resources and Staffing Industry management roles with Edgewood Properties in Piscataway, NJ, Brickforce Staffing in Edison, NJ, InfoPro Inc. in Woodbridge NJ and Plainsboro, NJ and Harvard Industries in Farmingdale, NJ, a former Fortune 500 company. He also served as Director of Human Resources for New Jersey Press, the parent company of the Asbury Park Press, Home News and Tribune and WKXW-NJ101.5. Earlier in his career, Marc served as Director of Career Services and Placement at Union Technical Institute in Eatontown and Neptune, NJ. In addition, Marc owned and operated Integrity Consulting Associates, a New Jersey based Human Resources and Social Media Marketing firm for 11 years. Marc also served as Council President in his hometown of Freehold Borough, NJ