In defence of inaction

For those of you unaware, the philosophy of #deliberateleadership has its roots in the Ancient Greek practice of Stoicism, (not to be confused with the modern English word ‘stoic’) I will spare you the deep philosophical musing (apologies to those unlucky enough to have already been subject to evangelical ranting) but I think it has real relevance for today’s context

One of the main tenets of stoicism is to think before we act, a deceptively simple but challenging practice. The idea is resist the temptation to react on impulse to situations, and instead use critical thought and deliberate action in pursuit of desired outcomes. In short, to recognise, but not submit to one’s own animal instincts.

One of the strongest instincts leaders must overcome is the impulse to take strong and decisive action. This bias towards action is mostly due to the perceived consequences for a failure to act. It is so strong that some leaders do not even recognise that inaction is an option. Case in point, Australia’s state level responses to Covid-19.

Warren Buffet is known for his relative lack of action as an investor, infamously apologising to shareholders for doing too much, claiming he would have made them more money if he’d spent more time in idleness. 

Yesterday, as Western Australia reported a case of community transmitted Covid-19 (yes, international readers, you have read this correctly, a single case…) State Premiers and Territory Chief ministers across the country swung action mode. Western Australia announced an official state of emergency and instituted a 5 day lockdown of the capital. Other states and territories, with the exception of New South Wales responded with quarantine measures and border closures of their own.

At their daily press conferences, leaders reassured their constituents that they are taking necessary action to protect them, patting themselves on the back and throwing shade at other states for their inferior actions. New South Wales stood alone, resisting calls to close the borders, insisting that such measures are neither necessary nor practical.

But even Gladys can’t resist the temptation to get a few barbs in, and who could blame her given the current state of political play. I know I’m not the one scratching their head in amazement at how our politicians can be engaging in such epic levels of mud-slinging when by any international measure we are handling this crisis with exceptional effectiveness.

Our political leaders have fallen into the trap of thinking more about how their actions will at the expense of their actual effectiveness. In organisational terms, it’s as if the senior leadership team of Australia have decided their individual business units’ engagement scores are more important than the long-term sustainability of the company as a whole.

Sometimes it’s difficult not to act, it requires strength of conviction, proper communication skills and an unrelenting focus on the outcome you’re shooting for. But given what’s on the line, is a bit of Deliberate Leadership too much to ask…?